FOOD PARK

Teaching staff.
Supervisor: Chris Reed
Co-supervisor: 

Students.
Authors: Shi Tang, Mengying Ouyang

Los Angeles County and Santa Monica have a long history of agriculture, but food cultivation has been displaced largely to the Central Valley; the consequent trucking of food from the Valley and other places contributes to regional pollution and carbon imbalances, and creates food insecurity issues locally. We propose a FOOD PARK that includes the whole system of food cultivation and distribution (food production, food processing, food retail, food education), that negotiates and revives the city's historical agricultural identity, and that creates a place where agriculture and social uses intersect. It is a speculation on how to experiment with food production, food processing, and food landscapes in an era of climate change. Gradually the FOOD PARK takes over more and more of the site, allowing local suppliers to meet growing demands—and remaking a consumptive infrastructure into a productive, multifunctional hybrid that extends Santa Monica’s reputation as a foodie haven.