Wohnprojekt Stiftsfreiheit is a self-organised, multi-generational housing project at Stiftsfreiheit 6 in Bielefeld, Germany. It was initiated by the association “Mehrgenerationenwohnen an der Stiftsfreiheit,” founded in November 2011 to plan and establish a shared living environment for people of different ages. The group’s stated aims include social connection, self-management, self-determination and, where possible, ecological construction.
The association brought together prospective residents, friends and supporters to work through questions of community formation, legal structure, financing and building design. After considering different legal forms, the group chose individual ownership apartments and developed the building jointly with an architect, without a property developer acting as a conventional developer.
The completed building contains 11 apartments, ranging from 55 to 110 square metres, as well as a shared area and a large roof terrace. Residents moved into the new building in January 2017. The project page reports that six apartments are occupied by their owners and five are rented; 17 people aged 25 to 79 live in the building.
Residents organise monthly house meetings, aiming to reach consensus on shared and individual concerns, and hold a monthly communal breakfast. Their activities have included gardening, a small house choir, yoga, a literature group, talks, readings, games evenings and cultural events. In summer 2019, they held their first neighbourhood festival with nearby residents.