Arcosanti: Sustainable living and the most candid tour guide ever!

There is something very 1970’s about Arcosanti.

That’s when it was founded and built. The brainchild of Paolo Soleri an architect, creator of bells and ecologist, Arcosanti was meant to be an experiment in a more sustainable and fruitful way to build cities and live in them. (Known as Arcology = Architecture and Ecology.) He was an intern of Frank Lloyd Wright, and perhaps more than Wright's architecture, he was inspired by the close community that developed among the interns working on Wright's projects.

It was also purportedly the inspiration for the look of Tatooine in Star Wars. That's 70's!

You also get the sense, that this is a place that's past its prime…or perhaps never achieved it? We only saw a couple of other visitors during the few hours we were there (to be fair, it was mid-day on a Tuesday). The video that kicked-off our tour looked like it had been shot in the 80’s, most of the buildings and furnishing while interesting at a distance…looked a little worse for wear close up. Perhaps most telling was the candor and discontent of our tour guide.

He was among an interesting mix of people living and working there. Some looked the part of aging hippies who had lived there for decades…. a lot more appeared to be in their 20’s. Our guide was in the latter group.

Where the metal bells are made.  Note the living quarters in the windows above. — Where the metal bells are made. Note the living quarters in the windows above.

Living space.  There are small pods, shared kitchens and bathrooms, as well as private apartments spaces. — Living space. There are small pods, shared kitchens and bathrooms, as well as private apartments spaces.

He was a (reformed) automation engineer turned futurist interested in alternate, sustainable communities. He, and the handful of other young people we saw around, had done a five-week workshop where they learn about the place, help out with construction and learn how to make the bells… the sale of which largely sustain the place. He had stayed on for a few more months…living in a pod-like space with a bed, and spending most of his time in shared spaces. He volunteered as a tour guide.

He vacillated between admiration for Soleri and what he had tried to accomplish and deep frustration with the way the place was currently being run.

The orchards that one produced food for Arcosanti are gone and all food is now purchased. There was, reportedly, a strong emphasis on revenue generating activities, that mostly profited from exclusivity. (A photoshoot was underway while we were there and a private concert — tickets were thousands of dollars —was planned for the weekend.)

He had particular distaste for the current cook ("He's awful and we don't understand why we can't rid of him"...????) and a board member that used an apartment in the facility as an (a-hem) storage space. When you live in a pod, the notion of wasted space probably does get under your skin a bit.

Needless to say, it was an interesting tour!!

We all bought bells… (alas, our guide told us the nicer bells are sold at their store in Phoenix) which can cost thousands of dollars, but start at $30. That’s only $10 more than the T-shirts… the bells certainly are the better, and more sustainable, buy.