First and foremost, I want to consider the particulars of building in the places that I call home, namely, Reno and Yerington, NV. Both sites are in the deserts of northern Nevada, hence a portion of my primary inquiry will be on building in the desert. What strategies can I glean from desert flora and fauna to create a building appropriate to the desert? How can a building become an active member of a desert environment?
I also wish to use the sites I have chosen to explore issues of identity for their wider contexts.
The Reno site is located in the center of a altering downtown half-full of casinos, and half-full of casino’s turned condomiums. It fronts the Truckee River, whose downtown waterfront has been positively transformed into the most popular social/civic space in the city.
The Yerington site is a bit closer to my heart, on land that may family has owned since the 1880s, for 4 generations. I would be the fifth generation. Working on this site would necessary explore visions I have for my future and the future of that land. A few years ago, under financial duress my family agreed to sell a significant portion of what I am calling my site, what my family calls the “Home Ranch”, to a developer. Luckily, the deal fell through, but the episode got me thinking. As I look forward to a career that with include some combination of continuing in architecture and going back to the farm, I see the potential to develop a portion of this land as a potential boone to both the community and to the farm’s bottom line.
I am hesitant to go forward with the Yerington site because it so personal. Possibly to personal to be interesting to other people. Additionally, I think proposing to turn agricultural land into built land might be unwise and unnecessary.
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