Building Living Neighborhoods -- Library of Unfoldings

What is an Unfolding?	jump
LIBRARY OF UNFOLDINGS IN PROGRESS

RE-USABLE PACKETS AND FRAGMENTS OF GENERATIVE CODE FOR USE IN YOUR OWN PROJECTS

Note: This part of the website is still a rudimentary first version, and is under continuous construction. You will find that it changes almost daily, since we are working hard to get a working model in place, and to continue improving it. If you wish to help us by modifying a particular unfolding, please go to open that item, and send us your proposed modification.

In order to understand what unfoldings are in practice, and for a summary explanation of unfolding as it occurs in nature, please look at the short essay called What is an Unfolding?

The library follows:
Here we present a list of available "unfoldings" -- reusable units of process which you can introduce and rely on, as you go through the process of making and reshaping your neighborhoods. You choose the ones which are most useful to you, and use them. Each step is a practical "how-to" instruction which corresponds to one action in the generative sequence of unfolding.You may choose those steps which appear useful, use them, and ignore the others. Click on the particular step you would like to see.

PACKETS OF UNFOLDING INDIVIDUAL UNFOLDINGS
*********PACKET-0***********

0
General principles of morphogenesis
This packet is the foundation on which everything else rests.

0.1	Becoming aware of wholeness
0.2	Everything arises from the wholeness of the land
0.3	Apply wholeness-extending transformations whenever you can
0.4	Do unfoldings in the order they must be done
0.5	Recursion: Each unfolding may be visited and used many times, and at many scales

*********PACKET-1***********

1
Allow a Vision to Unfold in your Imagination
This packet provides some of the unfolding processes needed for people to learn to see their own vision of the neighborhood

1.1	Your vision of the neighborhood
1.2	Statistics: Set some numbers to make it concrete
1.3	Encourage a spirit of community growing from day one, through community discussion
1.4	Form a first written vision of the neighborhood with a rough and ready pattern language
1.5	Identify the main types of entities that will be most important establishing this vision

*********PACKET-2***********

2
Diagnosis: drawing the beginnings of coherent form from the latent centers in the land
This packet unfolds a skeleton structure from the land, by strengthening the latent centers that exist there

2.1	Diagnosis: Extracting that vital structure of wholeness which must be extended, preserved, and repaired
2.2	Identifying magic configurations that are already in the place
2.3	Topographic survey of the land
2.4	Protecting trees and plants

*********PACKET-3***********

3
Unfolding the pedestrian structure of the neighborhood
This packet contains the steps needed to unfold the pedestrian spaces, squares, and paths

3.1	Unfolding the main center of the neighborhood
3.2	Finding and establishing other key pedestrian centers in the neighborhood (if within a green-field site)
3.3	Finding and establishing pedestrian centers in the neighborhood (if within an urban or brown field setting)
3.4	Positive space: making every piece of every part of outdoor space well-shaped and positive
3.5	Recursive positive space rule
3.6	Shaping each public space while standing on the land, according to deep feeling

*********PACKET-4***********

4
Placing Buildings to form living Centers
This packet contains the key steps needed to make buildings generate positive space, and thus create a living spatial background for the neighborhood

4.1	The main job of the buildings is to generate the beautiful and positive space of the neighborhood
4.2	Shape each pedestrian center that has been identified, by placing buildings to form its boundary, and intensify it geometrically.

*********PACKET-5***********

5
Land Tenure and Preparing to Plan
This packet contains certain steps needed to provide background legal structure to the neighborhood

5.1	Alternative forms of land tenure arising from the nature of a neighborhood
5.2	Getting a grasp of local zoning and city requirements

*********PACKET-6***********

6
Cars and Parking
This packet provides a more subtle approach to the placing of cars, parking, and roads, which leaves the environment more pedestrian friendly

6.1	Select positions for cars and roads
6.2	Cars, parking, and driveways are given their positions only AFTER houses and gardens and pedestrian spaces are already settled

*********PACKET-7***********

7
House positions
This packet provides essential background and rules of behavior for the siting of houses and apartments, going deep to correct the current malaise of present house layout in cookie-cutter neighborhoods

7.1	The lot structure in a neighborhood is of huge importance in shaping genuine community
7.2	Place house fronts so as to generate positive space in the space between the houses, whether that is street, or path, or park, or garden.
7.3	Identify the subtle and framed views: Look toward view, toward downslope, toward the sun.
7.4	Garden positions must unfold before house positions
7.5	If possible, place and build houses gradually -- one by one -- over time

*********PACKET-8***********

8
Individual House Design
This packet provides for the generic qualities of houses and flats as they impact the neighborhood

8.1	Unfolding color and light with respect to place
8.2	Choosing materials from the place which will make houses harmonious with the place

*********PACKET-9***********

9
Who Does What?
This packet deals with uniqueness and belonging -- the way that each dwelling is unique to a family, or person, or group of people

9.1	Who should design each dwelling?
9.2	What are the practical ways in which individuality and pride of possession can be made to coexist with a modern layout and productions process?

*********PACKET-9***********

10
The Construction Process
This packet deals with the interlocking of construction, evaluation, design, and modification, then moving forward with further construction -- as the normal (and necessary) way to build.

10.1	Fitting the foundations to the land, by hand

*********PACKET-15***********

15
New building contracts
This packet contains new types of construction contracts that will allow, and are consistent with unfolding

15.1	Fixed price contract, with management powers and flexible modification during construction, all built in thus allowing unfolding to occur
15.2	Craftsman's contract, with the same provisions for fixed price combined with flexible management allowing unfolding to occur

LIBRARY OF UNFOLDINGSIN PROGRESS

LIBRARY OF UNFOLDINGS
IN PROGRESS