Challenges Several challenges surround the future of Agri-Urbanism. To begin, the idea is new and success is un-documented. Municipalities are often times reluctant to introduce design applications which are not proven or even widely built. Another challenge acquiring initial buy-off from developers is that even the architecture takes a land-based approach – an idea that is still too new for many developers who are primarily interested in reaching Floor Area Ratio numbers and meeting government approvals to move the project forward.
Conceptual rendering of the Town Center at the Xi an Mountain Spring Agricultural Community project.
As Agri-Urbanism is an emerging school of thought, it is believed that only planned projects exist at this time. Andres Duany of Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company (DPZ) has been advancing this agenda through his work and various lectures over the last several years. However, skepticism follows DPZ’s work as ‘New Urbanism’ was ever present in the firm’s portfolio up until recently, which includes the Craig Ranch project on the outskirts of Dallas, a project that integrates the Cooper Institute – and their focus on human wellness and longevity. Planned AgriUrbanism projects of DPZ include Sky in Calhoun County, Florida, Hertfordshire County in England, and perhaps the most comprehensive is the Southlands plan for Tsawassen, British Columbia, Canada. These projects, along with SWA’s Preserve project in Stockton, California and Nanhu in Jiaxing, China, follow a similar set of design guidelines, principles, and strategies, while the SWA Mountain Spring Agricultural Community planned for Xian, China, attempts to apply a much more urban characteristic to the site with increased densities appropriate for the needs of a developing country.
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Marketability of property with an Agri-Urbanism framework is another challenge. Design strategies must be developed that deal with simple questions like image, pest control, long term farm management, who is responsible for assuring that the farm does not go to seed and how is that funded, safe integration of working farm circulation, and function from other community functions. Even if the municipality or developer does support the ideals of the project, many times zoning prohibits agriculture and historically and intentionally separates it from commercial and residential areas – a direct conflict with the ideals of Agri-Urbanism. Common in every project, especially introducing a trend in the profession, one must question the genuine intent of the client. Understanding whether the municipality or developer truly cares about creating a sustainable, innovative community and if they are willing pay the cost and put forth the effort to establish and maintain an agriculturally-focused community is critical to success. In addition to approval difficulties, accepting agriculture into our communities requires an acceptance of all that goes with it. The side effects of agriculture can include additional noise, smells, and to some, unkempt, informal landscapes – elements that urban dwellers might not expect or appreciate in a new community. Lastly, and perhaps this is only an internal professional challenge for Agri-Urbanism, but as landscape architects and planners, a question of our role in this approach comes to mind. Are we suited to plan and propose this kind of development or should technical agricultural advisors be brought onto the team? As a new development strategy, do Agri-Urbanists exist for consultation?