THERE are patches of municipal grass in Oxgangs which - were local residents of a mind - could be turned into communal gardens, with all the food and mental health benefits that could potentially follow.
But they haven’t - notwithstanding the existence of a group of local residents that go by the name, Oxgangs Community Gardeners - and it’s not difficult to speculate why.
It can feel quite exposing for individual households to pipe up with an idea for their locality, the possibility of ridicule and finger-pointing being too much to contemplate.
It most likely requires a third party to parachute in with a project and just get on with it or to have a set of pre-conditions set in stone at the get-go.
If the latter, it’s instructive to reflect on the near universal observance of the ban (introduced 20 years ago) on smoking cigarettes in indoor spaces. If there was a fear of people simply sticking two fingers up at the regulation, it almost entirely never happened.
So, in a similar vein, it could be that whenever the city council embarks on its next ‘affordable’ housing scheme, it thinks beyond any already existing requirements of residents, by adding a handful more.
As frequently mentioned on BuildEdinburgh, residents could potentially save themselves hard cash by sharing stuff.
This culture could be easily built into the bricks.
People could share cars - and BuildEdinburgh has explored how this could be practically achieved, here - power tools and even washing machines (again, BuildEdinburgh has advice on this topic too, here).
And of course, depending on what - if any - spare land there is, residents could run a communal garden (with accompanying potting shed, raised beds, cold frame, greenhouse, compost heap, rainwater harvesting, etc kit).
It all depends on what stage of a housing development residents begin to get involved.
At the end, when properties are being allocated (which is the assumption of this writer), or at the beginning (which is the hope)?
Administratively, there should not be much difference between placing residents at the start of the process to having them at the conclusion.
Maybe a workshop or two, the serving of tea and coffee and a facilitator (who could be part of a voluntary network, in the same vein as the charity, MCR Pathways, provides volunteer mentors for young people).
All the facilitators would require to have to hand is a menu of the options: car and bike sharing, recycling and refuse, a residents’ handbook (as in here, on BuildEdinburgh), communal gardening, power tools sharing, gym facilities, ‘later living’ requirements, communal laundry facilities, litter picking, storage space, social and meeting space, repair and maintenance, wildlife havens, acoustic and thermal insulation, elevator access, bowling greens and tennis and pétanque courts, acoustic and thermal insulation, outdoor seating and lighting, secure car and bike parking, guest bedrooms, children’s play park, bulk buying of provisions, adjacent properties for extended families (not least for those with caring responsibilities), trees, dedicated indoor space for young people, book clubs, crafting space, spring flowers, sanctuary courtyard, solar panels, balconies, ground floor retail, co-working space, treatment rooms and offices, etc, etc.
And then walk people through each of them.
It is a simple choice: set the parameters at the beginning or hope for the best after the ‘ship has effectively sailed’.
And out of the whole exercise might emerge that most valuable of commodities: trust.
Imagine the bonds of trust that could emerge if residents were to sit down together and agree how their housing might be designed (of course, there could be fallings out; but at least being forewarned is to be forearmed).
From the state’s perspective: potential savings in repair and maintenance bills, in policing budgets (reduced anti-social behaviour?) and health budgets (the mental and physical health benefits from ‘cohesive’ communities).
And with recent research from The David Hume Institute (here) suggesting that cost-of-living worries are the single biggest concern among Scots, the sharing culture underpinning this proposal could save households quite a bit of money too.
Mike Wilson is editor of BuildEdinburgh
Image details: copyright Mike Wilson