Former Bellingham Schools district office could be site of cohousing community
BELLINGHAM – The site of the old Roeder Elementary School and former Bellingham Public Schools District Office could soon be home to another cohousing community in Bellingham.
The school district still owns the building on Dupont Street but signed a letter of intent in July to sell it to 4th Corner Commons, a community group planning to convert the space into cohousing over the next several years.
The group plans to create 35 to 45 homes for semicommunal, intergenerational living on the property.
“There’s nothing new about cohousing,” 4th Corner Commons Community Coordinator Shelly Parks told the Bellingham Herald, relating the style of living to that of a communal village. “What really makes it different is that you know everyone’s name and they know yours.”
Each home on the property will be individually owned and is expected to have a kitchen and between one and three bedrooms. But residents will share common spaces and certain amenities, including a large common house with a community kitchen and dining area, gardens, guest rooms and workshop space.
The homes will sell at market rate and are expected to start in the $700,000 range.
Legally, 4th Corner Commons will be set up as a condo community with an HOA. But Parks, who lives in a cohousing community herself, described cohousing as a more “open” way of living that encourages social interactions, shared resources and deeper relationships.
“If they need me, I will be there for them. And I know they will be there for me,” Parks said.
The Cohousing Association of the United States describes the style of living as an “intentional, collaborative neighborhood that combines private homes with shared indoor and outdoor spaces designed to support an active and interdependent community life.”
Residents living in cohousing are involved in everything from the design to the governance of the community, according to the association.
This won’t be the first cohousing community in the area. Bellingham Cohousing on Donovan Avenue was founded in 2000 and has 33 homes in 10 buildings. Skagit Commons in Anacortes was completed in 2022 and has 30 households.
It’s unclear still whether 4th Corner Commons will retrofit the existing building for housing or design the community with a new build.
The building was originally constructed in 1908 and later housed the school district offices for decades. The school district ultimately opted to build a new office space, partly due to the cost estimate to remodel and repair the old building.
The building has major structural deficiencies, as well as aged electrical and heating systems. The building has also had issues with flooding, according to previous reporting by the Herald.
The Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA) is in the process of being finalized, according to Bellingham Public Schools Assistant Communications Director Dana Smith.
“Selling public property is an involved process, and a PSA allows for a due diligence or feasibility period before moving forward with a final sale,” Smith said in a statement to the Herald.
The feasibility period can be up to six months, according to Smith.
“We look forward to continuing the process with this community organization and their representatives,” Smith said.
The property is listed for sale for $2.95 million, which Parks said the group is expecting to pay. Future residents are funding the project themselves. Construction is expected to begin in spring 2027 with move-in anticipated for late 2028 or early 2029.