The house at 503 E. University Blvd. has completed its transformation from a fraternity house into something radically different.

It is the Spadefoot Housing Cooperative, the first student-oriented housing cooperative in Tucson.

"A lot of people don't know what a cooperative is. It's just a group of people who are working together to benefit themselves, to create an environment," said sophomore English major Niles Maxwell, who helped found the cooperative.

Roughly half of the co-op's 17 residents are University of Arizona students or employees, said Spadefoot resident and UA graduate Andrew Miller.

Miller said Spadefoot members' ages range from 19 to 46.

"We've got a fairly diverse group here," he said.

The cooperative, named after a toad indigenous to the Southwest, was begun by UA graduate Paul Patton, Maxwell said. Patton came to Tucson from Austin, Texas after living in a cooperative there for four years, he said.

In November 1994, Patton and others working to establish the co-op acquired the 15-room house, which was previously the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity.

The house needed extensive repairs before anyone could move in, said Maxwell.

"The fraternity trashed it," he said.

Loans from other cooperatives provided money for other renovations and equipment, Maxwell said, and the co-op opened Aug. 1.

Depending on their room sizes, Spadefoot members must pay between $300 and $384 for monthly rent, which includes an equal share of utilities and food. In addition, they must spend a few hours a week working for the co-op.

Although the rent may seem high, Miller said, the price is balanced by the benefits of living in a community atmosphere. Work such as shopping, cooking and upkeep are divided among the members as part of their living arrangement.

"It's not cheap, but it's a wonderful support system," Miller said. "Five nights out of the week somebody is cooking a meal for you."

The co-op is a vegetarian household, Miller said, but meat can be consumed there "as long as it isn't cooked inside the house."

Kathie Cummings, UA psychology graduate, said she moved into Spadefoot because she was looking for housing with "more of a family atmosphere."

"I had lived in a house before with a lot of people, but it wasn't an organized cooperative," she said, adding that the level of activity at Spadefoot has helped her adjust to being away from her family.

"There's always someone to talk to, while still maintaining a level of privacy. It's like a family there."

Cummings said that passersby have noticed the house's change. They are also curious about the its current role, she said.

"I've had a lot of people ask me what it is exactly that we do here," she said.

Personality conflicts and other problems that plagued the co-op's beginning months have been resolved and the cooperative has begun to function smoothly, Maxwell said.

"The lifestyle is understood now. When we first moved in, nobody knew what it would be like," he said.

The co-op's first six months were a fine-tuning period, Miller said.

"People tend to weed themselves out," he said.

Information provided by Spadefoot defines a cooperative as "a member-owned, democratically-managed business whose purpose is to serve its members rather than to earn a profit."

Spadefoot is a non-profit organization, Maxwell said, because making a profit is not the point of cooperative living.

"It's an alternative lifestyle. Its basis is in working together, something we lack in the United States right now, especially in the cities," he said.

Maxwell said that the co-op is working towards purchasing the house on University, which they are currently leasing. Opening another co-op near the university is another goal, he said.

"It's setting up a system of co-ops. We have to have one house, at least, to work out of," he said. "We will expand."