Squatting

[razboz]

There is this big building which used to to be a Motel. It has been unoccupied (legal or otherwise) for 7-8 years. The ownership of the buildings is undetermined and my local commune still has no definite plans (a McDonalds was going to be built there but was refused by the inhabitants of the commune).

This place is big, counting probably 200 rooms including a large ball-room type hall, a night-club and a restaurant. It is also trashed. Every window has been broken as have most doors. All the furniture is beyond repair and there is glass everywhere. It is pretty dirty as junkies and night-time recreational drug users have left their mark. Its also graffitied up, which dosent really bother me. Around it it has quite a few square meters of grassy land, including a few beatifull trees and some rather poetic ivy. The building itself is solid enough and no one really uses it on a regular basis. The police baricaded it against gypsies parking their vans/cars in the parking lot so now it has some pretty solid defenses around it, in case of police intervention.

My question is the following:

How would i go about fixing up the place? Probably not all of it but enoiugh to live in. What materials would i need? In what ways could i get electricity and running water? Is it beyond hope? How could i get decent windows (or good replacements) for not very expensive? Are there any websites or resources on the subject?

I have never been involved in this kind of project, so any advice would be helpfull. I have a handful of volounteers to help, but none of us are quite sure where to start.

[An archist]

First of all, try to contact some experienced squatters, for a building that size you need to be prepared and have a decent plan.
Try to find out who the owner is, that way you can carefully check what s/he plans on doing with it.
Since the police have barricaded it, one of the trickiest parts of the night itself should go a lot easyer.
To see what stuff you need to fix, you'll need to get inside to have a look around, make a list of the stuff you want to check in advance (from experience I can say you sometimes forget things because you're nervous) also, don't go alone and have a banner ready. If the police show up while you're looking around, drop the banner, getting caught for squatting is probably less bad then for burglary (check the laws about that).
When you're inside, try to find the main switch and the place where the water enters the building, who knows, maybe you just need to open a tap, or change a switch to get water and electricity (but don't count on it) otherwise, find someone who knows how to get you both or simply call the instances and pay for it.
In short, try to find out as much as you can about the place before talking to experienced squatters, if you've done you're homework they'll be much happier to help you.
For the night of the squatting, you'll need quite some people to come in, help barricade, put out banners and deter the police from coming in, after that you'll still need some people to be in there round the clock and people outside who you can call in case of an emergency.
I have no idea how your local squatting scene operates, do they call the press, the cops? How do the cops react when a place is squatted? Talk about that, make sure all involved are on the same page and you don't encounter any surprises.
Oh and don't talk to people about it unless you want them to help.

http://squat.net/ can be useful too.

[farleft]

Advisory Service for Squatters (http://www.squatter.org.uk/)

Or PM NoXion he is a squatter in London.

[DM.]

Sorry to hijack this thread, but i've got also a few questions about squatting..

If the owner is a governmental instance, like for example the police, fire department, etc.. Does that make any difference?

Also, if a random (non political) organisation need some sort of homebase, without anyone living there, do you think squatting is a possibility? It's obvious you can't alway protect the place since it will only occupied 2-3 days a week, but is there any chance you could pull this off?

[Palmares]

I've squatted a bit. I have a bit of knowledge, especially in Australia, but am London right now in a squat ,and am off to mainland Europe to learn more hopefully.

But yeah, to give advice, it would help to know what country you are in for the exact laws etc. I can give more general squatting info, but don't have time right now.

[razboz]

I am exactly in Switzerland.

Anymore info and it would porobably be some kind of security hazard (ive had bad experience). If your on the mainland drop me a line.

i am going to start moving in at the end of the month, in between G8 protests. Thanks for the advice so far. I have been checking out this place, and it will be impossible to reconnect electricity and water without getting a technician to do it (or at least somone who knows a lot about rebuilding electric/plumbing installations). The legislation in my area means that the water and electricity services must coninue supplying a building with people in it only if the water and elctric are already connected. i dont know what the situation is in the case where it was disconnected. The previous owners went broke and left, so now its owned by the Commune. This means no one will be reclaiming it soon, as the Commune cannot make a decison without voting first and cant make a major decision without some kind of refferendum.

I need advice on good ways of patching up this old dillapidated building, if anyone knows about these things.

Thanks :)

[OneBrickOneVoice]

For a building that size, it would really be best to squat it with a bunch of friends, family, or like minded people as much as is realistic. Trying to clean up a trashed motel like that by yourself is crazy

[Red October]

Originally posted by Down-For-People's-War!@May 10, 2007 05:45 pm
For a building that size, it would really be best to squat it with a bunch of friends, family, or like minded people as much as is realistic. Trying to clean up a trashed motel like that by yourself is crazy
I agree. I geuss you could try fixing up one or two rooms to live in by yourself, but if you really want to squat something that big it seems best to have a nice group. For the windows, you may be able to use clear plastic sheeting and duct tape to insulate them and give you some light during the day. If you squatted it, would there be any danger from junkies?

[seraphim]

You need to squat the place with enough people for it to be permanatly occupied, it needs to have the backing of local people as well, which is easier to get than you might think especially if your gonna clean the place up.

[An archist]

Well, once you've squatted it, you might get all sorts of trouble, usually it's nothing serious (if anything happens at all) but be prepared.
Getting support from the neighbours is relatively easy, just start cleaning up visibly, don't cause trouble and don't make too much noise the night of the squatting.

[Palmares]

I think everyting everyone has said in regards to getting more support etc, such as friends to live with, or even just community support is crucial. The reason why is simply that this sounds like a fucking big project. Like this coud totally be social centre material, if you are up for that.

But yeah, since its a big place, and undoubtedly has alot of smashed windows amongst other damage, you would need a crew to at least go around looking for scrap materials to patch up the place. And such a big space would be good to share with the community, since such public places to hang out don't really exist and it woud help protect the place if it was supported.

But then again, if you just want to live in it full stop, you still would need a few friends at least to help fix and man it.

Honestly, I think you really need to talk to some local activist/squatters to help you wi9th advice and maybe even labour for this project. I dunno where in Switzerland you are, but i know there is a social centre in Berne at least, and if there is a place like that around your area, contact them.

Honestly, I don't think some advice I give you via the net is anywhere near enough. If you were doing a residential house, I could totally give you heaps of tips, but yeah, what you ask is a hell mission, so best if you talk to someone in person etc.

Sorry I couldn't really help... :(

[Palmares]

I found this:
The laws and logisitics of squatting in the UK are basically among the best you’ll find anywhere in the West, excepting maybe the Netherlands or possibly Switzerland.

But hopefully I can find better info....

[socialistfuture]

www.squat.net is good.

trying to find out squat laws here in Aotearoa nz at teh moment. not many people are game for it here :(

[socialistfuture]

http://www.squat.freeserve.co.uk/

[counterblast]

Originally posted by [email protected] 02, 2007 01:59 pm
There is this big building which used to to be a Motel. It has been unoccupied (legal or otherwise) for 7-8 years. The ownership of the buildings is undetermined and my local commune still has no definite plans (a McDonalds was going to be built there but was refused by the inhabitants of the commune).

This place is big, counting probably 200 rooms including a large ball-room type hall, a night-club and a restaurant. It is also trashed. Every window has been broken as have most doors. All the furniture is beyond repair and there is glass everywhere. It is pretty dirty as junkies and night-time recreational drug users have left their mark. Its also graffitied up, which dosent really bother me. Around it it has quite a few square meters of grassy land, including a few beatifull trees and some rather poetic ivy. The building itself is solid enough and no one really uses it on a regular basis. The police baricaded it against gypsies parking their vans/cars in the parking lot so now it has some pretty solid defenses around it, in case of police intervention.

My question is the following:

How would i go about fixing up the place? Probably not all of it but enoiugh to live in. What materials would i need? In what ways could i get electricity and running water? Is it beyond hope? How could i get decent windows (or good replacements) for not very expensive? Are there any websites or resources on the subject?

I have never been involved in this kind of project, so any advice would be helpfull. I have a handful of volounteers to help, but none of us are quite sure where to start.
There are several things I recommend doing before actually taking residence there.

The most important thing is that you get to know the neighbors! Lead them to believe you've recently become the owner, and obtained the building from a government auction or through inheritance. Ask them how they feel about the vacant property, and what they would like to see come out of it. Offer usage of the building for community events.

Under NO circumstance should you attempt to sneak behind the neighbor's back, coming and going at odd hours to avoid being detected. This will only draw negative attention to the building, and ruin any chance of a long-term residence.