ArpaFIL is hosting a design competition to re-imagine the city in a more harmonius balance with the environment and with its inhabitants. The competition essentially wipes the city of Guadalajara, Mexico off the face of the earth and the challenge is to create a city from scratch given only the natural topography of the land. The competition is quite daunting, if not for its size alone. But it also serves as the perfect venue for exploring many of the concepts and theories about urban development, architecture, infrastructure, and the spaces between that I have been developing for years. The project is becoming a proving ground for a new type of urbanism. I hope that the competition will also serve as the centerpiece of a few blog entries.
In essence, the project can be seen as a study of hierarchy in scale; The project is organized around a central transit spine which includes international high-speed rail, regional rail, and local train service, highways and local lanes, even pedestrian routes. Development forms along the spine, increasing in size and density as transit nodes grow nearer. Layered upon this built form is one controlled by the natural topography: Low/zero density forests and wildlife refuges, interconnected riparian zones along streams and lakes, and low mountains framing and containing the natural limits of the city. In the geographic center of the city, where most cities are at their densest, agrarian farmland and Solar Stirling power generation.
The most unfortunate aspect of the competition is that all information must be submitted on one 30" x 40" presentation board. With a few years of concepts finally being overlayed and analyzed, there's sure to be more information than can be submitted. Rejoice, for that is what will be covered here!
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