Group building self-sustaining community near Spring City UT

[BroJones]

I live in Spring City -- wonderful rural town, population about 1,000 and growing. Known for the abundance of water and springs originating in the nearby hills and mountains (to the east). Here's a front-page Deseret News article relating:

Utahns creating a sustainable, off grid community

Published: Friday, Aug. 13, 2010 12:33 a.m. MDT
SPRING CITY, Sanpete County — Heaving the flat slate stones into place along a low wall, James Torgersen seems comfortable in the wilder reaches of Sanpete County.
Surrounded by oak shrubs and rough rock on a slanting hillside, Torgersen stands in the midday heat of Utah's summer, miles from any paved roads. This is where he spends his free time, moving dirt or mixing clay to construct the hutlike structures he has designed.
With the help of a small handful of fellow Utahns, Torgersen is working to create an off grid community here.
Living off the grid means getting away from it all — literally.
For a few Utahns such as Torgersen, the idea of no more utility bills and total self-reliance, from growing food to building a home, is on its way to reality.
On the south slope of White Hill, just south of Spring City, the Safe Haven Village has started a self-sustainability project that allows members to really get away from a society they say is broken.

Their biggest complaint: Modern living doesn't take the long term into account.
How long can Utahns grow green lawns in the country's second-driest state? How would modern man cope if a major infrastructure like trucking went away and suddenly supermarket shelves were empty?
The concerns might seem abstract and distant, but these are questions Safe Haven Village is trying to answer. The off grid community was started by Utahns looking to change the way people think about modern living. The group purchased 90 acres of land in March and since has been building structures and teaching seminars on how sustainable living works.
Some states such as Colorado and New Mexico have embraced self-sustainability with building companies dedicated to the zero-energy, green model. And even though cob homes built from activated clay and dirt have cropped up in communities such as Moab, the trend is just beginning to find its footing in Utah.
Living off the grid may be about living simply, but launching such a project is complex. Safe Haven founders will have to convince Sanpete County officials that non-traditional amenities like dry mulch toilets are safe alternatives to septic tanks, and they'll need to come up with enough money to buy the necessary water rights for the 18-home project they envision.
In the meantime, they're buying water rights for four homes and waiting to present a minor subdivision plan for the project's first phase. And they've been hard at work building the structures that don't require permits.
"This is an evolving project," said community member Sterling Allan. "We're trying to do as much as we can now."
The goal for the community is much larger than that. Torgersen hopes to incorporate as many sustainable techniques into the community plans as possible. Whether it's collecting rainwater, building greenhouses or using solar energy, Torgersen hopes to turn the wild property into a place where people can come to practice total self-sustainability.
"I don't have to go out there and buy stuff from Walmart to keep my life going really nicely," he said. "I can live here. My children's children's children can live here on what this land can produce on a perpetual basis."

The structures being built are modest and rough, with buildings each smaller than 200 square feet. So far, Safe Haven has outlined a main community area and started construction on a kitchen, storage room and shed. The roughly crafted buildings have yet to be polished into completed structures. One structure's walls are made of tubes filled with sand. Another is carved into a hill, and another is made from clay mixed with hay.
Each building serves as a teaching ground for anyone wanting to see multiple building techniques for sustainable houses — all in the same place.

"The more people that know how to do it, the more people that are awake and know it's possible, the more we can pressure our institutions to change the rules," said Renee Shaw, part of the Safe Haven group.
Sterling and Cheri Allan plan to build the community's first home on a five-acre section of the property. The Allans moved from the comfort of their suburban home in Eagle Mountain to build their own self-sustaining home. The planned three-bedroom house will house the couple and their four children, complete with a home office and playroom for the kids.
And just because it's sustainable doesn't mean the family plans to go without amenities like television or Internet. Sterling Allan runs a website from home dedicated to green technologies.
"Hopefully, by us doing this, it will make it easier for people to build green in Utah," Cheri Allan said.
But sustainable building isn't necessarily cheaper, Sterling Allan said.
"It's extremely labor intensive and slow," he said. "What I like about it is that it's honest."
Modern building methods, on the other hand, "use slave labor and rape the earth," he said.
Challenging building codes that weren't meant to support sustainable practices has been a learning experience for the Safe Haven community. Torgersen, the driving force in getting the city to approve building permits, spends his spare time explaining what sustainable living means to city and county officials. He also finds the loopholes that are making construction in the village possible.
"People like me research the building codes and find out how to do things the right way," Torgersen said. "We can build all these legally."
The system isn't meant to support sustainable living practices, he said. Even freely collecting rainwater wasn't possible until July 1 under Utah law.
Now, Safe Haven residents will have to convince state and county officials that filtering the water with sand and charcoal is acceptable.
The Allans and Torgersen are hoping to change the way legislators and Americans think about modern life and what is sustainable.
"Let's simplify," Torgersen said. "We've gotten way too complicated."

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/prin ... unity.html

[pritchet1]

Caution: You might want to check their religious affilations, before you move into any neighborhood.

Sterling D. Allan served a full-time mission for the church in Japan and BYU-Provo graduate, then got involved a little with the Freeman Institute (why he accepted me as an employee, because of my affiliation with Cleon Skousen) before following Bo Gritz in the early '90's, which helped him move away from the fullness of the Gospel. He still runs and hosts the "David's Outcasts" Forum (decidedly anti-LDS, that has a large following). The move from Eagle Mountain I understand, was a mutual community no-loss-of-love activity. I invited him back into full fellowship with the church, which has, as far as I know, not happened yet. He still runs the greaterthings.com website.

He is also not a stranger to court battles (he lost 3 times against me in unemployment challenges).

(I strongly suspect he is still a lurker on this forum.)

This is his current focus - http://www.allanssustainablehome.com/

I still pray for him.

[Jason]

Caution: You might want to check their religious affilations, before you move into any neighborhood.

Sterling D. Allan served a full-time mission for the church in Japan and BYU-Provo graduate, then got involved a little with the Freeman Institute (why he accepted me as an employee, because of my affiliation with Cleon Skousen) before following Bo Gritz in the early '90's, which helped him move away from the fullness of the Gospel. He still runs and hosts the "David's Outcasts" Forum (decidedly anti-LDS, that has a large following). The move from Eagle Mountain I understand, was a mutual community no-loss-of-love activity. I invited him back into full fellowship with the church, which has, as far as I know, not happened yet. He still runs the greaterthings.com website.

He is also not a stranger to court battles (he lost 3 times against me in unemployment challenges).

(I strongly suspect he is still a lurker on this forum.)

This is his current focus - http://www.allanssustainablehome.com/

I still pray for him.

I would love a one-on-one Q&A with Bo someday...why he went the direction he did....

[pritchet1]

Here you go! http://www.bogritz.com/

[Jason]

Here you go! http://www.bogritz.com/

LOL...been through that one a few times. Not quite what I had in mind.

[pritchet1]

Eve's temple? Solstice worship? Male-female "balance"? Where is the grove for the lovefest on the 90-acre plot?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KA5glQgE6PI

I can bet any Temple-attending Latter-day Saints who participates in building Safe Haven Village will get drummed out, after their structures are completed.

This is only from my personal experience, dealing with the founders of Safe Haven Village utopia in my recent past.

See my comments over on the Mentinah Archives thread. Yes, I expect to see another Nemenhah branch (matriarchal order) started there at that location.

[BroJones]

Sanpete valley is attracting many different types. I think the desire to be self-sustaining is a good one; I do not recommend leaving the LDS Church but rather I encourage staying close to the Church and attending the Temple. I have warned about the Mentinah archives and "Cloudpiler" in a separate thread.

Indeed, we had a get together of friends recently -- not a "GROUP" !! -- just a discussion on some of the "groups" coming to the valley. There is a sense that some "groups" are decidedly not desirable to affiliate with. One of the groups was "Gaurdians of the Republic" with possible variations on that name, with some surprising anti-America teachings of this group. I don't know much about them.

Evidently such groups -- including certain "Christian militias" are springing up nationwide (not just a local phenomenon!).

While we're on this theme -- do you know of "groups" to avoid? what do you think of RestoreAmerica? Christian militia groups?

[Original_Intent]

Sanpete valley is attracting many different types. I think the desire to be self-sustaining is a good one; I do not recommend leaving the LDS Church but rather I encourage staying close to the Church and attending the Temple. I have warned about the Mentinah archives and "Cloudpiler" in a separate thread.

Indeed, we had a get together of friends recently -- not a "GROUP" !! -- just a discussion on some of the "groups" coming to the valley. There is a sense that some "groups" are decidedly not desirable to affiliate with. One of the groups was "Gaurdians of the Republic" with possible variations on that name, with some surprising anti-America teachings of this group. I don't know much about them.

Evidently such groups -- including certain "Christian militias" are springing up nationwide (not just a local phenomenon!).

While we're on this theme -- do you know of "groups" to avoid? what do you think of RestoreAmerica? Christian militia groups?

I belonged to a very good group for about a dozen years that was involved with martial arts training that ingluded firearms and all types of weapons, etc. It was not involved with food storage or really any other types of preparations, it was just about getting the skills and then organizing to be able to defend ourselves and to work together in the event of a meltdown. Unfortunately, Satan seems to have his eye on such groups, we were infiltrated and pretty much destroyed from within.

[Nan]

I believe that any group that organizes itself outside of the church will eventually self destruct and lead people away. I have watched group after group do this.

[BroJones]

I believe that we can do MUCH within our own families, certainly recognized by the Church and by the Lord!

I agree that groups can be (and are) infiltrated, and destroyed from within. But I can't see how families can suffer this great problem...

We --our family -- having fun doing "camping out" this summer, learning how to live close to the land and its herbs and waters. I've also lost weight (fat) and grown much more fit. We could do more, of course. Still, Quite the adventure, really.

There is a problem with "unrighteous dominion" in various groups (see D&C 121), but not in our family.

[Original_Intent]

I went thru a phase where I felt that the way to fight secret combinations was with a righteous version of a secret combination. I felt like with the powers that are arrayed against us, the only way to win was to also maintain secrecy and fight from the shadows.

Every attempt I have seen has led people away from the church and left most of the participants in a worse situation than they started in. I do not agree that every righteous endeavor has to be founded within the church, in fact I think that would be severely limiting, and there are many freedom loving patriots out there who have not accepted the gospel.
There are at least a couple of political parties that are built upon correct principles that are rightly not part of the church organization.

I believe that whatever we do needs to be done in broad daylight, we just need to be educated enough and able to teach with the spirit enough that we can address the smearing and false accusations that are to be expected. This forces the enemy to come fight us in the light to some degree. You can't fight darkness in the shade or with more darkness.

[Mosby]

I believe that any group that organizes itself outside of the church will eventually self destruct and lead people away. I have watched group after group do this.

I've seen this as well, it seems that no matter how well-intentioned the folks are- that they always wind up at odds with the church in one way shape or form.

I have several close friends in Spring City- and almost bought land their myself, until I realized that "survival" depends more on how I live than where I live.

The Lord can protect me and my family (if it be his will) just as easy in New York City as Spring City, I still have yet to see the council from the Brethren to "separate from society" head for the hills and start your own little group.

[Jason]

until I realized that "survival" depends more on how I live than where I live.

The Lord can protect me and my family (if it be his will) just as easy in New York City as Spring City....

Amen!

And should we die before our journey's through,
Happy day! All is well!
We then are free from toil and sorrow, too;
With the just we shall dwell!
But if our lives are spared again to see the Saints their rest obtain,
Oh, how we'll make this chorus swell-
All is well! All is well!

[creator]

I believe that any group that organizes itself outside of the church will eventually self destruct and lead people away. I have watched group after group do this.

There's obviously a right and a wrong way to go about such efforts... I've noticed that the groups that lead people astray are the ones organized by people who are already going down the road to apostasy.

The prophets have asked us to "join with neighbors to study the Constitution and the Conspiracy"

Also... given by the First Presidency when David O. McKay was President of the Church:

“In order that there may be no misunderstandings by bishops, stake presidents, and others regarding members of the Church participating in non-church meetings to study and become informed on the Constitution of the United States, Communism, etc., I wish to make the following statements that I have been sending out from my office for some time and that have come under question by some stake authorities, bishoprics, and others.

“Church members are at perfect liberty to act according to their own consciences in the matter of safeguarding our way of life. They are, of course, encouraged to honor the highest standards of the gospel and to work to preserve their own freedoms. They are free to participate in non-church meetings that are held to warn people of the threat of Communism or any other theory or principle that will deprive us of our free agency or individual liberties vouchsafed by the Constitution of the United States.

“The Church, out of respect for the rights of all its members to have their political views and loyalties, must maintain the strictest possible neutrality. We have no intention of trying to interfere with the fullest and freest exercise of the political franchise of our members under and within our Constitution, which the Lord declared he established “by the hands of wise men whom [he] raised up unto this very purpose” (D&C 101:80) and which, as to the principles thereof, the Prophet Joseph Smith, dedicating the Kirtland Temple, prayed should be “established forever.” (D&C 109:54.) The Church does not yield any of its devotion to or convictions about safeguarding the American principles and the establishments of government under federal and state constitutions and the civil rights of men safeguarded by these.

“. . . We therefore commend and encourage every person and every group who is sincerely seeking to study Constitutional principles and awaken a sleeping and apathetic people to the alarming conditions that are rapidly advancing about us.” (”Statement Concerning the Position of the Church on Communism” 477)

[Mahonri]

The prophets have asked us to "join with neighbors to study the Constitution and the Conspiracy"

Also... given by the First Presidency when David O. McKay was President of the Church:

“In order that there may be no misunderstandings by bishops, stake presidents, and others regarding members of the Church participating in non-church meetings to study and become informed on the Constitution of the United States, Communism, etc., I wish to make the following statements that I have been sending out from my office for some time and that have come under question by some stake authorities, bishoprics, and others.

“Church members are at perfect liberty to act according to their own consciences in the matter of safeguarding our way of life. They are, of course, encouraged to honor the highest standards of the gospel and to work to preserve their own freedoms. They are free to participate in non-church meetings that are held to warn people of the threat of Communism or any other theory or principle that will deprive us of our free agency or individual liberties vouchsafed by the Constitution of the United States.

“The Church, out of respect for the rights of all its members to have their political views and loyalties, must maintain the strictest possible neutrality. We have no intention of trying to interfere with the fullest and freest exercise of the political franchise of our members under and within our Constitution, which the Lord declared he established “by the hands of wise men whom [he] raised up unto this very purpose” (D&C 101:80) and which, as to the principles thereof, the Prophet Joseph Smith, dedicating the Kirtland Temple, prayed should be “established forever.” (D&C 109:54.) The Church does not yield any of its devotion to or convictions about safeguarding the American principles and the establishments of government under federal and state constitutions and the civil rights of men safeguarded by these.

“. . . We therefore commend and encourage every person and every group who is sincerely seeking to study Constitutional principles and awaken a sleeping and apathetic people to the alarming conditions that are rapidly advancing about us.” (”Statement Concerning the Position of the Church on Communism” 477)

+1

[creator]

There is a sense that some "groups" are decidedly not desirable to affiliate with.

And this group (safe haven village) definitely has a lot of new age influence in it, a mingling of the philosophies of men with scripture.

[pjbrownie]

I'm trying to "out" my mother-in-law who is involved with all of this stuff. She lies to get her temple recommend, but other than than, yes, it's all their, the Ezekiel Group, Lynn Ridenhour, crystals, New Age, prayer circles outside of the temple.

I suspect some on here lurk in these groups and are proselytizing to us.

[NoGreaterLove]

I suspect some on here lurk in these groups and are proselytizing to us.

I agree. I see their philosophies taught here all the time.

[kathyn]

It seems like posts get weirder and weirder.