A local rebellion against big, gated retirement villages, and an inspiring alternative for ageing in place.

“What is it about getting older that we suddenly want to shut people away behind a big, tall fence – and that people want to do that to themselves?” 

– Lia Parsons, Founder

What’s the idea?

When developers from a neighbouring retirement village knocked on Lia’s door and asked to acquire her house and land for expansion, Lia didn’t just tell them where to go. She decided to build a thriving, multigenerational alternative… right under their noses. 

Miller’s Corner – a multigenerational co-housing community in the Adelaide Hills, less than 30 minutes from the Adelaide CBD – was the result. Here, 8 sustainable and accessible houses co-exist on an acre block of land, with residents including children all the way through to older adults. It’s consciously designed as a place where people can grow old – and where that doesn’t mean withdrawal, siloing, or disappearance. 

Here, residents have their own private lives and space – but they’re also around to help each other out. A common, central building is available for activities, guest accommodation, and the weekly potluck dinner. Music can often be heard. A communal garden is tended. Kids play freely outside. And when members of the community need care or support, others lean in. 

It’s the sort of place that Lia wanted to grow old in – not in a retirement community, siloed with people of the same age and life stage – but where other generations would continue to be part of daily life. The motivation was the same for other older members who joined the community. And for those who live there with children, the potential for their kids to access a broader mix of adult role models – including people later in life – was a huge part of the appeal.

What does it help us imagine?

Miller’s Corner is just one example of a quiet but growing movement towards multigenerational, shared housing models – an alternative to private single-family dwellings, and to siloed retirement village or care facilities. Not only do these models bring gains in sustainability and housing affordability, but they bring to life practical ways for generations to be more connected and mutually supportive as part of daily life. Because when people live alongside each other – in an environment that prioritises care for one another – that organic connection and support becomes almost inevitable. 

It’s also a reminder that one of the mainstream models we’ve become accustomed to  – the over-50s retirement village – is actually a fairly unusual social arrangement. Unlike residential aged care, where people receive ongoing support or clinical care, retirement villages are age-restricted communities where residents live independently, usually under long-term lease or licence arrangements.

Why is it, Lia asks, that we think the best place for people to grow old is in a community full of other older people… often behind a fence, out of sight and mind of younger generations? After all, most of us spend our lives in multigenerational homes, workplaces and neighbourhoods. What changes around retirement age that suddenly makes age-segregated living seem normal – or desirable?It’s a layered question that points towards many deeper issues. Like our tendency to separate ourselves into homogenous age groups. The lack of supportive community fabric that older people can trust and rely on in many urban areas. Perhaps even the lack of interest younger generations sometimes show in having older people around at all. Miller’s Corner asks us to reconsider not just how we house older people, but what kinds of communities we want to belong to ourselves.

Keen to hear more? Watch our interview with Lia here.

What can you do with this?

You don’t need to move into a co-housing community to start building more connected, interdependent ways of living.

Start where you are 

• Think about the building, street or neighbourhood where you live. Do you know the older people around you? What would help make your community a place where people can age feeling connected, supported and valued?
• Are you, or someone you know, thinking about moving into a retirement village? Ask management what they do to integrate with the wider community. Even if the answer is ‘not much’, you’ll be sending the signal that this matters – and getting village operators thinking about it. 
• Do you live in a retirement village already? How could you create opportunities for engagement with other generations in the nearby area? Take Cameron Close retirement village in Burwood as an inspiration. They’ve hosted local primary school kids for reading support sessions for 20 years now, and invited young helpers from Lively for regular tech help sessions – building intergenerational relationships into the fabric of village life. 

Take it a step further 

Inspired to start your own co-housing community development? It can be a long process – but if you’re inspired, Co-Housing Australia has some great resources to help you on your journey. Or reach out to us at Good Flock, and we can connect you with people like Lia who can share their experience! 

Co-housing is a growing movement, and many others are experimenting with it across Australia. If you’d like to find one near you, try contacting Co-Housing Australia, or exploring local Facebook groups and neighbourhood networks. You can also check out Beyond the White Picket Fence by Savannah Fishel, which lists a number of active communities around Australia. 

Do you have a large block of land? Could you invite others to share it with you – through the building of additional dwellings, or by providing space for people to park a tiny house? Sharing land with even one or two others can bring real social, environmental and financial benefits.