This work is a collection from my thesis studio, ARCH 698b with Dr. Alison Hirsch in Landscape Architecture, and is set to be finished in May of 2024.
In this project, I'm developing a new utopian design theory rooted in the Central Valley. Starting with an analysis of what defines a utopia, I looked into popular standards such as the garden city and the Barcelona superblock. Ultimately however- a true utopia, by definition, is unachievable. My focus is centered on crafting a modern utopia—a connecting thread throughout the San Joaquin Valley providing essential resources like food, water, and shelter. Using utopic design as the starting point, and tailoring block typicals and fundamental resource access to the towns of the Central Valley based upon their existing conditions.
Although some would consider designs centered on the equal access of food, shelter and water to be design guidelines for the standard quality of life, I disagree. Throughout the vast history of the Central Valley there have been countless injustices that prioritize the rich over the poor, which have led to the imbalance that we see in the Valley today. Hundreds of thousands are drinking water contaminated by lead, arsenic and nitrates, and the government is moving too slowly to convince us that these people are their priority. Additionally, battles over land fallowing have been occurring since 2014 when SIGMA was implemented, in order to remove 500,000 acres from the industrial agriculture industry.
My project will implement a strategy for equipping these rural towns with a resilience plan for the next century. With replicable designs in housing, to opportunities for development in places often forgotten by the public, I am redefining what a Utopia looks like- and hint, it might be closer than we think.
