The difficulty lies , not in the new ideas , but in escaping the old ones… John Maynard Keynes

The difficulty lies, not in the new ideas, but in escaping the old ones…

John Maynard Keynes

The Galisteo Basin PreserveSanta Fe, New Mexico

The Galisteo Basin PreserveSanta Fe, New Mexico

Conservation-based Community Development

1. Origins Story

Presentation outline…

1. Origins Story2. Conservation Vision


1. Origins Story2. Conservation Vision3. Community Design Principles


1. Origins Story2. Conservation Vision3. Community Design Principles 4. Wild Ambitions


Origins Story…

Origins story…

Origins Story…

Origins story…

Origins Story…

• A geography of large ranches (>10,000 acres)• 20 minutes south of downtown Santa Fe• 1 hour north of Albuquerque

Origins story…

Origins Story…

Origins story…

• The northern rim of a 230 sq mile watershed• A landscape of spectacular scenic and cultural resources

• 1,500-acre public land acquisition • A public investment of +$3,500,000 from county open space bonds

“Commando Conservation” …

“Commando Conservation” …

A fleetingvictory?

A 300-acre mixed-use/mixed income community development

“Aikido Community-building”…


“Aikido Community-building”…

• TND and TOD-serving urban design• Green building and LID planning• Affordable housing• Youth education and adult learning• Economic development

• Embraced by 12,000+ acres of publicly accessible open space• $40,000,000 FMV• 1100 % ROI

“Aikido Conservation”…


A Faustian bargain?

A Faustian bargain?

“I like to play indoors better, ‘cause that’s where all theelectrical outlets are.”

- Paul, a San Diego 4th grader

Richard Loev, Last Child in the Woods

A Healing imperative…

“In belonging to a landscape, one feels a rightness, an at-homeness…This condition of being fully present…is what the Quakers call ‘centering down’”

Scott Russell Sanders, Staying Put

A Healing imperative…

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2050 Business as Usual

Conservation Alternative

A Landscape under Siege…

Thornton Ranch

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Business as Usual: 2010 AD

Thornton Ranch

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Thornton Ranch


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Thornton Ranch


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Thornton Ranch


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Saddleback Ranch

Meanwhile… Back at the other ranches…

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Spur Ranch


Going…

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South Lamy


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Rancho Viejo SW

Going…

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CR 42 incursions

North Lamy

Rancho Viejo SW

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Rancho Viejo SW

Going…

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Rancho Viejo SW

Game Over

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Rancho Viejo SW

Damage Assessment:• 50,000+/- acres• 3,700+/- homes• 350+/- miles of roads• 1,700+/- water wells

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The “New Math” of environmentally responsible development…

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Green Eco-structure +

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Green Eco-structure + Green Building +

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Green Eco-structure + Green Building + Mixed-Use/Mixed Income Development =

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Green Eco-structure + Green Building + Mixed-Use/Mixed Income Development =

Ecologically Responsible Community-Building

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Beyond “Business as Usual”…

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Toward a Regional “Green Plan”…

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Targeted Outcomes:

• 30,000 acres of public open space• 60 miles of trails• 1,500 new homes• 200,000 sf commercial & civic uses• $700MM in new private investment

Community Design Values…


• Engaged and responsive community dialogue• Community-serving development program


• Environmental Stewardship

• Environmental Stewardship

• Grassland and riparian restoration• View shed protection• Cultural resource stewardship• Aquifer protection• Energy conservation • Waste minimization


• Land-sensitive Site Planning


• Concentrate development footprint• Minimize disturbance to soils, plants and water• Buffer riparian corridors• Respect significant landscape features

• Land-sensitive Site Planning


Soils and drainages

GIS Mapping…

Soils and drainages

Public view sheds

GIS Mapping…

Public view sheds

Soils and drainages

Skyline impacts

GIS Mapping…

Soils and drainages

Public view sheds

Skyline impacts

Slope

GIS Mapping…

Slope

Solar orientation

Soils and drainages

Public view sheds

Skyline impacts

GIS Mapping…

Site planning decision-making…

Optimal Development Envelope

Site planning decision-making…

Village Development Envelope: 300 acres

Community Plan Overview…

The development program…

Residential program:

• 675 market rate homes - single family detached, compounds, courtyard, lofts, live-work, cottages,town homes, condos

• 290 affordable homes - attached and detached single family (50% CLT units)

The development program…

Civic and commercial program:

• 100,000 sf educational (i.e., Charter high school 37, elementary school, pre-school)

• 30,000 sf commercial (e.g., café, village market, pub, galleries, offices, live-work)

• 20,000 sf civic facilities (e.g., fire station, post office, environmental center, chapel, library)

Organizing Principles…

Knolls and ridge lines

Neighborhoods organized aroundlandforms and view corridors…

Knolls and ridge lines

Neighborhoods organized aroundlandforms and view corridors…

Views to surrounding mountains and grasslands

Connectivity and accessibility…

Neighborhood and regional trails/bikeways

Access to transit/trolley

Regional highway connections

Vibrant community core…

Village Residential zone:A diverse mix of educational, commercial, civic, and intensive residential land uses (25 du/ac)

Places of engagement and belonging…

Gathering spaces: performance spaces, outdoor markets, play spaces

Places of engagement and belonging…

Gathering spaces: performance spaces, outdoor markets, play spaces

Courts, parks, plazas and alamedas

Reverence and celebration…Sacred spaces: Chapel, ceremonial and sculpture gardens

Reverence and celebration…Sacred spaces: Chapel, ceremonial and sculpture gardens

Green cemetery

Environmentally responsibledesign and construction…

Environmentally responsibledesign and construction…

• Construction materials with high thermal storage and insulation values (windows, building systems)

• Passive solar neighborhood design• Sun shading/roof overhangs• Strategic cross ventilation• Low “imbedded energy” materials

• Community power (CSP, wind, biomass) • Material recycling

Transportation/Accessibility

• Mixed-use development program• Trolley service along existing rail• Regional commuter trails/bikeways• Vanpools/ride sharing/zip cars

Low impact design engineering…

• 85% wastewater reuse (165 ac/ft) for toilets and outdoor irrigation• 500,000+ gal rainwater catchment and aquifer recharge wells

• Grassland and riparian restoration for storm water• Contour-based road design• Xeric and shade-bearing landscaping

Wild Ambitions…

A deep and sustaining conservation ethic …

A landscape the grows increasingly rich in its health and diversity …

A practice of community development that inspires and challenges …

A practice of community development that inspires and challenges …

“Hope is not the same as optimism… but rather an ability to work for something because it is good.”

Vaclav Havel

Live…

Live… Your dreams…

Documents

The difficulty lies , not in the new ideas , but in escaping the old ones… John Maynard Keynes