I'm sure I am not the only person of goodwill who has a few acres of undeveloped land.

Assuming we get Katrina Villages going, owners will be able to donate the use of between two and five acres to "Katrina Village.org (KVO)" The contract will be for one year and will include a clause that holds the owner harmless from liability for injuries and accidents that occur in relationship to the Village.

Why so little land?

The KVO idea is to dispurse Katrina victims throughout the country in relatively small groups so that local host communities will not be overwhelmed. Many semi-rural towns can withstand the impact of 80 new residents whereas several thousand refugees would be very disruptive.

Each Village will aim to become self-governing, self-educating and self-reliant. Of course, this will not happen instantly. In some cases the Villagers will be able to relocate to permanent homes within a month or two. Other Villagers will not wish to or be unable to return to life as it was.

KVillager contracts would be for 3 months at a time and should be renewable for 3 additional quarters except in cases of criminality or severe antisocial behavior.

States and Counties would be required to suspend the usual eviction proceedures in order to accomodate this emergency need to get unevaluated tenants into temporary housing immediately.

Lawyers, land use experts and city/county/state officials: we need you to help develop the documents to make this possible in a hurry. Find or start a Katrina Village Committee in your community and let's get going. When we have the infrastructure in place, I expect the Red Cross, FEMA, and other relief organizations will be delighted that the private sector is creating options for thousands of displaced people.

Figure out what you can do then post your offer on the Contributions Page. Offers only. Don't send money. Don't sign any contracts yet. We'll contact you or you contact us. We all need to avoid scams

How to Comment