It's a housing cooperative founded in Madison, WI in 1977. Located at 622 N. Henry Street, we are a short walk to campus, state street, and the lake. Right now we are undergoing major renovations (tuck pointing and painting), though we anticipate remaining the only purple coop in the downtown area.

Each year, we have between ten and eleven members who enjoy cooperative dinners (house meals are vegetarian, but you can cook whatever you want for yourself), conversation, living together, hanging out on the porch, and a small (urban style) garden. There are no age limits, though the majority of members are associated with one of Madison's universities. Couples are welcome, as are non-US citizens, and those living traditional and non-traditional lifestyles.

The full legal story is somewhat complicated, but basically nobody owns it. Or we own it, depending on how you think about it. There is a corporation called "Central Madison Housing Corporation" whose sole asset is "Rivendell Cooperative" whose sole asset is the house at 622 N. Henry Street. The people who live at Rivendell are the board of directors of the cooperative (and the corporation) and hence hold and control the title, deed, and mortgage. So -- Rivendell kind of owns itself. What this means in practical terms is that there is no landlord. This is good, because it means that there is no landlord who is trying to suck profit from the people living in the house. This bad because it means the members are responsible for stuff. That's right, if the toilet leaks, someone has to call a plumber! Don't worry, the rent money (in the form of the "maintenance fund") pays for it, but someone still has to show the plumber where the toilet is.