AP
2/11/23
Ten years after the founders bought an 8-acre parcel off Benton Street in Iowa City, the Prairie Hill cohousing development is constructing the last of 11 buildings. Four of five units have already been sold, with homeowners expected to move in by June.
Iowa’s first cohousing neighborhood will soon have 37 units and more than 50 residents.
The project’s founders say sustainability is a common value at Prairie Hill. It starts with building the houses into the hillside to take advantage of the windbreak and heat from the earth.
The one remaining unit for sale in Prairie Hill is an 800-square-foot, three bedroom house that costs $330,000. That includes use of the 8-acre property and Common House. Association dues cover Wi-Fi, garbage and snow removal for 4 inches or more, and a reserve fund for major expenses.
All the Prairie Hill units have ductless heating and cooling units. Because the units transfer energy rather than generate heat, they can use up to 60 percent less energy that most home radiators.
At 800 square feet, the average Prairie Hill house is half the size of the average single-family home in Iowa. Other units range from a 500-square foot studio to a 1,400-square foot three-bedroom.
Rather than maintaining a big house for the grown children come to visit, Prairie Hill residents can reserve the Common House dining room for a reunion and one or two guest rooms for visitors.
There are currently more than 160 cohousing neighborhoods in the United States, according to a 2018 New York Times article.