ADU, Travel, Community
Lina Menard
Maui, Hawaii

After A Week Long Send Off, My Round the World Trip kicked off with eight days in Maui visiting my sister Sarah who has split her time between Hawaii and Alaska for many years. What an epic way to start this adventure! There was mist falling when my sister greeted me at the Kahului airport on Maui a week ago, so she teased me about bringing the rain from the mainland. We headed straight for Paia where she presented me with a young coconut and a lei, accompanied by the chant for the gifting-of-a-lei.

Maui, Hawaii
Tiny House, Travel, Planning
Lina Menard
Lucky Penny Moves to Walla Walla

A number of circumstances collided recently to compel me to move the Lucky Penny to my property in Walla Walla where I have a ground bound small house called Valencia Cottage. So on Tuesday trusted tiny house movers Linh and Stephanie Pham helped me move the Lucky Penny safely from Portland to my place in Walla Walla.

Lucky Penny Moves to Walla Walla
Minimalism, Workshop
Lina Menard
Downsizing Tune Up

As I packed up recently in preparation to travel cross country in my Honda Fit, I did some downsizing… It was harder than it had been during my last couple of moves because this time I had more stuff. I’d been living in a bigger space…My apartment was a studio, but it was still about 6 times bigger than the Lucky Penny! I talked with several people about the experience and a handful of them said “oh my goodness, I need to do more of that!” So I’ve decided to offer a 6-week Downsizing Tune Up…

Downsizing Tune Up

ADU Case Studies Project

Now Collecting ADU Stories from Across America

Now Collecting ADU Stories from Across America

Calling ADU Owners, Dwellers, Designers, and Builders from across America to share ADU stories for an exciting new project with AARP. The many benefits of ADUs - especially for multigenerational families - have caught the attention of AARP. They've commissioned a publication about ADUs, which will feature half a dozen case studies of ADUs with various configurations and uses. If you're an ADU owner, dweller, designer, builder, or city planner and you believe you can help with this project, we'd love to hear from you! Just send me an email at accessorydwellings@gmail.com by February 28th, letting us know which of the four items above you'd like to assist with and send along a photo!

Guided ADU (Bike) Tour: The Inside Scoop

Pedalpalooza Tiny House Tour - Billy UlmerLast year I had a blast leading a guided bike tour for Portland's Build Small, Live Large ADU Tour, so this year I'm doing it again! The ADU Tour sold out last year, so this year it's expanded to two days. This is one of the best chances in the nation to see the interior of a variety of accessory dwellings and to learn from the ADU owners, designers, and builders.

Guided ADU (Bike) Tour: The Inside Scoop

Saturday, May 30th OR Sunday, May 31st, 9:30AM-4pm

Tickets are $75 and available through Niche Consulting

Lina Menard will lead a special Guided ADU Tour during the Build Small, Live Large ADU Tour to share the inside scoop on the ADUs featured on the tour. Lina is the coordinator of the ADU Case Studies Project and a tiny house dweller and advocate. She will also share insights and information from the other 40+ case studies she has conducted. This guided tour option will cost $75 and will be capped at 20 people. The tour will be conducted by bike, but a carpool option will also be available. You can register for this option for Saturday or Sunday. This exclusive guided tour will go from 9:30am-4pm.

The Saturday, May 30th tour will feature ADUs in NE Portland, while the Sunday, May 31st tour will feature ADUs in SE Portland. Most of the ADUs are brand new to the tour this year so it will be fun to show them off. I've become familiar with most of the ADUs on the tour because I've been Coordinating the ADU Case Studies Project. I've had the chance to interview more than ADU owners about the challenges, highlights, and lessons learned through their ADU design and build process. I look forward to giving the inside scoop on each of the ADUs as well as sharing insights and information about the other ADUs in the Case Studies Project.

If you'd like to join us, please claim your ticket.

Second ADU Case Study Goes Live

  Scott Powers' story is the second ADU Case Study to go live

In December, I began Coordinating the ADU Case Studies Project  and I've had a great time so far talking to ADU owners about their little homes. What a great range of different houses in different styles, built for different purposes by people with different backgrounds!

I have several more posts in a draft format as we work on fact checking and adding photos. I'm eager to share these stories with you. Meanwhile, here's an excerpt of the second ADU Case Study, which I posted this week. It's called Scott Powers' ADU: 3 Generations at Home. Jump on over to AccessoryDwellings.org for the full post:

Proximity allows the three generations of Scott’s family to share meals and trips to the grocery store. Their children are now teenagers, so childcare is not as important anymore, but it’s still nice having grandma and grandpa close by. Scott’s parents pay utilities but no rent because they paid for the ADU in cash after selling their home nearby. They used high-end cabinetry and finishes, an on-demand water heater, and Scott’s favorite feature, a gas fireplace, to make the ADU feel cozy. Scott jokes “the ADU is nicer than our house!”

In fact, Scott’s only concern about the ADU is that the investment the family made, and the value that it adds, might not be recognized if they sell their property someday. (You can read more aboutUnderstanding and Appraising Properties with Accessory Dwelling Units.) Fortunately, Scott’s family has no immediate plans to move. The ADU has created flexibility for their future.

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Coordinating the ADU Case Studies Project

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Kol's ADU Exterior

While I was working with Orange Splot LLC, a Portland-based development company that specializes in innovative sustainable infill housing projects, I Showcased Accessory Dwellings in Portland on the AccessoryDwellings.org website. You can read these posts here:

Now we have updated the AccessoryDwellings.org website so that we can feature more ADU profiles. Our goal is to compile a collection of case studies of permitted accessory dwellings from across Oregon. I’m delighted to be coordinating the ADU Case Studies Project. I look forward to helping people share their ADU stories so that we can continue advocating for ADUs as a flexible, affordable housing option. You can read our first new case study, Kol Peterson's ADU: A Backyard Home.

If you or someone you know has a permitted accessory dwelling in Oregon and you would like to participate in the project, please email me at accessorydwellings.org.

Sincerely,

Lina Menard

Coordinator

ADU Case Studies Project

AccessoryDwellings.org

(541) 854-0875