Everything Old is New Again

A fourth-generation Mormon named David Hall is making plans to develop his idea of a Utopian society in the woods of Vermont - "New Vistas" is the name, or was until recently. He chose the areas surrounding the towns of Royalton, Sharon, Tunbridge, and Stafford because of their proximity to the birthplace of Mormon prophet Joseph Smith.

I listened to WBUR Boston's interview with David Hall and found myself comparing Hall's vision with that of the Shakers'.

In the early years of the nineteenth century our ancestors were creating a community at Pleasant Hill based on faith. For a time, it was heaven on Earth. They believed it would be sustainable.  But, long-term, it was not. Everyone points to the celibacy issue as being their downfall. If it weren't for that, would they have continued to thrive? What percentage of the population is willing to live communally, and give up their material wealth? How does that degree of willingness change along with a changing political climate?

Joseph Smith's 1833 Plat of Zion was Hall's inspiration for the project (and Smith's inspiration for the plat was the Bible prophet Enoch who built the Holy City of Zion). The plat shows a city of 20,000 laid out in a grid pattern.

Plat of the City of Zion, June 1833

Hall was quoted as saying “Each [multi-family] house has house captains, which are a team of one man and one woman. These are a selected married couple, with each providing leadership for and dealing directly with issues related to their gender.” In this respect, his plan is very much like the Shaker's system of "family" houses led by a male and female elder. But would individuals be valued for their unique gifts and assigned jobs that develop those talents? Or would the business entity decide who performs the various functions of the community?

There won't be cars and trucks driving around; everything one needs would be within walking distance. To help maintain wilderness and animal habitat, and stop urban sprawl, each community will be surrounded by thousands of acres of unplanned nature. Hmmm...they want to be isolated, or at least have a buffer between themselves and the world. Livestock will also be kept outside the towns. It sounds like these future Vermonters won't be vegan. Each community will be one square mile, high-density living, and each person will be allotted just 200 square feet of living space.

I wonder what rules David Hall's society will impose on its members. I can guess that the plat's grid system isn't going to work well in the hilly terrain of rural Vermont. Hall has said that so far, he's bought up only wooded property. His artist's renderings of New Vistas show an area that would need to be clear-cut before development. So that buffer would come at a cost to the wilderness.

20,000 people of child-bearing age quickly become a larger group. Unless... we're talking about members of society who are past reproductive age, or are sterile... or celibate. The largest of the Shaker communities never exceeded 700 individuals and even within the communities people spread out in smaller "families."

What do you think about Hall's Vermont utopia? Good idea?