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Domes for the Homeless: Radical proposal seeks to 'transcend homelessness' in Las Vegas


Geoship building the next great American home to transcend homelessness, and it hopes to bring it to Las Vegas. (Courtesy Geoship)
Geoship building the next great American home to transcend homelessness, and it hopes to bring it to Las Vegas. (Courtesy Geoship)
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Homelessness in Las Vegas and across Southern Nevada swelled into a public crisis before the eyes of the country during the final months of 2019.

As the City Council voted to pass a controversial ordinance in November, virtually criminalizing those without a roof over their heads, and Clark County actively sought solutions from nonprofits and businesses alike, proposed answers to the numerous problems surrounding homelessness seemed ineffective or simply impossible.

The ordinance has been met with outrage and a host of experts saying its premise is fundamentally flawed and inhumane. Equal rights activists have even promised a mass protest in downtown Las Vegas if the ordinance is allowed to go in effect come February 2020.

Meanwhile, Clark County’s request for proposals was mostly answered by the usual suspects like The Salvation Army, Las Vegas Rescue Mission and Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada.

Yet one submission dubbed "Homes for the Domeless" coming from the little-known startup Geoship looks to use state-of-the-art architecture, village-building principles and a self-help approach to forming communities and solving the homeless crisis in Las Vegas.

THE GEODESIC DOME

The company, with big-name partners like Zappos, City Repair and the Buckminster Fuller Institute, submitted the proposal to the county, hoping to build a transitional housing complex which will be primarily made up of the company’s signature geodesic domes—a bioceramic structure the company says is engineered to “last for centuries, enhance local ecosystems, optimize health and maximize energy efficiency.”

The geodesic (a geometry term referring to the shortest distance between two points on a sphere) structures are made with high-strength triangular panels reinforced with hemp and basalt fiber mesh and hold a ceramic core that is highly insulative.

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The material reflects more than 80 percent of radiant heat, according to the company. Combined with the dome shape and vents on the exterior, the materials will “passively cool the structure with minimal use of air conditioning."

200-square-foot domes will be the primary dwellings for the homeless residents looking to transition into more stable and permanent housing, though domes of up to 1,500 square feet may be included or added to the village.

The company says that the structures are designed to enhance the light, water and electromagnetic environment while providing no fuel for mold growth and using zero chemicals or Volatile Organic Compounds. The geodesic domes aim to be homes that are 100 percent non-toxic, fireproof, mold, earthquake and hurricane resistant, generate zero net waste, removes carbon dioxide from the air, are recyclable and cost way less than a traditional home.

The America Institute of Architects says, “The geodesic dome is the lightest, strongest, most efficient means of enclosing space known to man.”

THE GEODESIC VILLAGE

The proposed Geodesic Village is building off of the Dignity Village model put into action by City Repair in Portland, Oregon. While the funny-looking, ultra-efficient structures hope to transform the way we think about construction and the environment, the village aims at replicating and improving the self-help system Dignity Village created.

The village will require transitional residents to participate in its success. “Our goal is to create environmental conditions that support the healing of people so neglected and hurt by their world as to have become marginalized and ‘disposable,’” the company says.

Embracing urbanicity, the village with have a center where the place’s culture will be expressed and reflected. Also, gateways will be constructed to mark openings and transitions into and out of and within the village.

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Greenhouses, gardens, communal kitchens, a store, a library and school, an infirmary, a meeting house, toilets and solar showers are among the additional structures, geodesic in design, along with outdoor recreational and cultural areas will accommodate residents. There will also be a receiving tent where the village will take incoming donations and organize them to be distributed from the store.

The population of the village during the initial stage will be 50 people. As many as 40 of these people will be transitional residents, and the village will be able to accommodate up to 16 additional transitional residents during extreme heat or cold. Permanent or semi-permanent residents will comprise between 20 and 30 percent of the population and will work as coordinators, guides and maintenance workers of the village.

Safety will be enforced through the parameters of a membership agreement, which every resident will have to sign prior to living in the village. A volunteer security team will help resolve any disputes while the community plans to engender a strong relationship with law enforcement.

The village hopes to then expand rapidly.

To financially support the endeavor, Geoship will build a plant on the same ground as the village, donating two 200-square-foot domes to the village for every three sold at $37,000 each.

The $4 million plant will create 350 high-paying jobs, according to the company.

Geoship also plans to continually run fundraising campaigns and collect private donations.

SOLVING THE HOMELESS CRISIS

The Geodesic Village sounds wonderful, a utopian vision sure to distract many people from its ultimate purpose: to help end homelessness in Las Vegas.

So, besides giving the roofless roofs, getting the food-less fed and supporting those most often forgotten, how does such a dreamy, revolutionary yet holistic and communal idea actually help the homeless?

Well, the village plans to help in a number of ways and addresses at the same time drug addiction and mental health.

Job training and income opportunities will be available onsite with micro-businesses, employer networks and prospects for further construction. Partnerships with local educational institutions will give residents the chance to continue their education. A cooperative agreement will be in place to provide residents with healthcare.

To address mental health, the village prompts residents to plug into what Geoship calls “community living in harmony with the land.” It aims to use the practice of sitting in a circle and listening to others with empathy to develop residents’ mental health and support as well as respond to any conflicts that might occur.

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Also, a hothouse will be among the village’s structures to help residents in the process of recovery and detoxification.

Geoship Co-Founder and CEO Morgan Bierschenk said in an email, “We believe the crises of homelessness, affordable housing, climate change, and loneliness can all be addressed with an integral solution based upon: village building, regenerative architecture [and] a new work paradigm.”

The company hopes to gain the support of Clark County and generate momentum to earn other partners.

The company concludes its proposal to the county, “Together we can build the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible and create a new model that spreads across the nation.”

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