Housing Concepts: Salinas Valley

The focus of this project seeks to combine 21st century agricultural production harmonically alongside urban development. Agriculture as the “centerpiece” of providing economic generation would stand in contrast with our current examples which include the industrial factory or the office/service industries. To be successful, a urban agricultural economy would have to minimize the undesirable material by-products of the industrial/service economies. Degradation of the land and soil, the presence of pollutants and contaminants, depletion of water and the unbridled consumption of farm land by tract housing and commercial development would work against the creation of a healthy urbanized agricultural environment.

The development of this new urbanism would have the viability of a organic life cycle. Phasing would include a initial “seeding” which would allow for the evaluation, reflection and focus for a new settlement. Secondly, a “growth” period to allow for expansion and receipt of new people. Thirdly, a “consolidation” period to refocus and diversify the community, and finally a period of “reversibility” which allows for contraction and movement of towns in response to the need of agricultural production.

PLACEMENT:

Highway 101 Salinas Valley

The proposed urban environment of the Salinas Valley would be a linear development which would occur alongside of route 101. The initial development would occur at the edges of the existing towns (King City, Greenfield, Gonzales, Chular). The highway and the existing Amtrak railway would serve as the main transportation spines linking the existing towns in the Valley with the new linear infill.

DEVELOPMENT PATTERN:

1/4 Of A 40 Acre Module

Starting with the existing pattern of 40 acre parcels, the new developments would use parcels of land perpendicular to the highway. So as not to overwhelm the existing agricultural farmland each development would be restricted to a quadrant no larger than 10 x 10 acres. The entire community would be walkable, with a light rail or bus stop adjacent to the transportation spine. Local commercial services would be integrated within the housing fabric and community institutions such as schools and houses of worship would be adjacent to the rail/bus node. When fully developed each community could be a self-sustaining town with a population of 3,000 to 4,000 people.

NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCKS:

Integration and Reversibilty

The neighborhood blocks are comprised of modular building units which are contained within a linear lightweight steel frame skeleton. The skeleton has a deck raised above the land which permits water and sewer lines to service the buildings from below. Since the deck is supported on columns, the building footprint atop the land is minimized and therefore the reversibility or the dismantling the blocks will leave less damage to the soil. The subdivision within the skeleton would allow for 26’-0” wide x 74’-0” depth lots. There would be a common roof which would unify the block and for each lot width the roof would have three subdivided infill areas to allow for (1) a garden, (2) controlled shading and ventilation, and (3) solar panels for energy generation. The modular buildings never span the entire width of lots and therefore the mid zone between the roof and the deck allows ventilation through the side yards of the buildings.

BUILDING INFRASTRUCTURE & MATERIALS:

Modular Units and Agri-Board

Within each single lot a 21’-4” x 21’-4” single story base unit can be constructed. The base unit consists of a studio unit with bathroom, kitchen, living area and possible stair. The base unit can be expanded horizontally or vertically to accommodate a range of family sizes and also has the flexibility to function as a commercial/office occupancy. One of the chief building materials for the modular units would be Agri-Board. Agri-Board is composed of agricultural by-products and can be used for both floor and wall constructions elements. The resultant modular building dimensions are related to the manufactured panel sizes of the agri-board.

This project was selected as finalist of the Phase 1 Competition and selected for the Phase 2 on the assigned site of Point Sur.