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Copyright By Kristin Lenore Donaldson 2019 The Report Committee for Kristin Lenore Donaldson Certifies that this is the approved version of the following report: Compromises and Comparisons of Complete Communities APPROVED BY SUPERVISING COMMITTEE: Supervisor Katherine Lieberknecht Robert Paterson b Compromises and Comparisons of Complete Communities By Kristin Lenore Donaldson Report Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements For a Degree of Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning The University of Texas at Austin May 2019 c Acknowledgements The researcher would like to start by giving a most humble expression of appreciation to the subjects connected to the case study communities who generously agreed to be interviewed. The volume of information and first-person perspective was invaluable to this endeavor. The researcher would also like to acknowledge SnowMansion Eco Adventure Lodge and Hostel for the exception from their three-month employment commitment. Their willingness to hire the researcher for one month allowed the site visit at Greater World to be conducted. Lastly, the researcher would like to acknowledge the free therapy their friends have provided throughout this process. iv Abstract Compromises and Comparisons of Complete Communities Kristin Lenore Donaldson, M.S.C.R.P. The University of Texas at Austin, 2019 Supervisor: Katherine Lieberknecht Many planners throughout history have attempted to achieve a holistic society through physical and policy planning. Garden Cities of To-morrow by Ebenezer Howard is a mainstay in planning curriculum, and yet activities today are still considered fringe in the professional field. Howard’s vision of well-connected network of mostly self sustaining towns, provided with local food, jobs, commerce, and recreational space is generally viewed as positive, pleasant, even admirable- but ultimately impractical. Today, no theme is more central to the minds of planners than sustainability. A concept that encapsulates environmental, social, and economic concerns, sustainability is a great challenge. Planners try to find balance between, and often act as intermediaries between competing networks of stakeholders, vying for more power over the two other spheres. However, communities that have self-organized have reached a level of success and sustainability beyond chance. These communities could serve as a model for the wider planning community going forward. This research hopes to address questions surrounding the ways in which communities can increase sustainability through providing services, and if or how these insights may inform planning on a wider scale. This report investigates how these visions and ideals are being attempted in the United States today. There is a range of scales and a variety of approaches to create places that are holistic. Three sites serve as examples of the breadth of communities, ranging from Twin Oaks Ecovillage and Intentional Community, the Greater World Community created by Earthship Biotecture, and the town of Arcosanti. These sites were examined using a two-part matrix including food, water, employment, education, energy, healthcare, entertainment, transportation, and housing in part one and ownership schemes and affordability in part two. Climate and controversies were also v considered. This matrix was partially inspired by The Austin Area Sustainability Indicators project. Research revealed that there were common themes among the communities despite their differences, among them being a spirit of revolution, progressive ideals, and novel technology. Further, it was found that the most sustainable or complete community was not necessarily the most applicable to the wider planning field. vi Table of Contents Introduction to the Project ...................................................................................................... 1 An Introduction to Utopian Communities ......................................................................... 2 Complete Communities in Planning History ......................................................................... 7 Garden Cities of Tomorrow ................................................................................................. 7 Pullman’s town ................................................................................................................... 12 Current Trends: New Urbanism ........................................................................................ 16 Measures and Methodology ................................................................................................. 20 Austin Area Sustainability Indicators .............................................................................. 20 Matrix .................................................................................................................................. 21 Findings .................................................................................................................................. 25 Twin Oaks ........................................................................................................................... 25 Greater World ..................................................................................................................... 33 Arcosanti ............................................................................................................................ 38 Other Forms of Complete Communities ...........................................................................44 Corporate Campuses ......................................................................................................44 Military Bases .................................................................................................................46 Other Models ................................................................................................................. 48 Conclusions............................................................................................................................. 53 Comparisons: Themes........................................................................................................ 53 Compromises: Notions of Superiority .............................................................................. 54 Replicability ........................................................................................................................ 57 Applicability and Limitations ............................................................................................58 Appendix: Austin Area Sustainability Indicators ............................................................... 60 References............................................................................................................................... 61 vii Introduction to the Project Sustainability is arguably to the most pervasive theme within planning today. In every scale, sustainability serves as a reminder to consider the lasting impact of our designs. Regional planning and the far-reaching impacts of the lifestyles the built environment supports are cause for national attention. The use of insulation and responsibly sourced materials in home building is on the minds of home-owners and architects alike. With so much attention that sustainability is getting, is it time to start seriously considering a broadly sustainable model of community making? In this paper the researcher will be investigating three distinctly different community building endeavors that attempt to reach self-sufficiency. Self-sufficiency is not a synonym for sustainability, but it is perhaps the natural end to the progress of sustainability. A community that is truly self-sustainable would be reaching goals of sustainability beyond what we can currently imagine in an average city or town. True self- sufficiency would include radically local produce, onsite energy production, efficient water capture and use, and the necessary amenities for people to live their lives and access to what they desire. The idea of complete communities have come and gone and come again in the history of community planning. In 1898 Ebenezer Howard published Garden Cities of ToMorrow. This well known text outlines how a community could be built to meet the citizens needs in a robust way. The book addresses access to quality homes, public schools, placement of job centers, food production, and even social centers such as libraries, museums, and shopping districts. In the 1960s the back to the land movement created an array of communes in which members needs would be met mostly through what could be produced on their parcel of land. While these endeavors emphasize a simple lifestyle which was often equated to scarcity and fanaticism, it clearly indicates a desire for people to be connected to their the resources to which they owe their lives. In the early 1980s, New Urbanism arose in the United States. In 1993, a group of Chicago-based architect-planners founded the Congress for New Urbanism. This affiliated group created a new focus to push back against the bedroom communities of suburbia, which offered their citizens nothing else but houses and roads. The Congress for New Urbanism took a design oriented approach to fulfill people's needs