I remember dreaming about living in an arcology while I read William Gibson’s Count Zero. I planned out elaborate arcology floor plans for various aborted Shadowrun campaigns. All the while, I knew these megastructures were things of science fiction — like the flying car I always wanted — that I could dream about but never enjoy in my lifetime. I couldn’t help but laugh, then, when I read about the New Orleans Arcology Habitat. And it wasn’t just for the funny name.
The New Orleans Arcology Habitat, or NOAH (I know, right?), is an enormous 30 million square foot self-contained city. It sports twenty thousand residences, three hotels, three casinos, schools, hospitals, and 50,000 square feet of “public works” space. The entire thing is intended to run on wind, solar, and water power. This thing is straight out of a science fiction novel.
“It will eliminate the need for cars within the urban structure, and thus becomes a carbon neutral entity.” And yet, it holds 8,000 cars within its 1,200′ high body. Weird. Don’t get me wrong: I’m glad to see some really creative designs, and forward-thinking solutions to the problems of human habitats. I just think that this one is a little too much. Maybe they can start with something a little smaller, in order to work out all the bugs, before they launch into a floating city designed for 40k residents.
Hat tip Gizmodo.