Research Essay: Renavie Espoir

Public Spaces of Renavie Espoir:

Virtual Reality Dome, Tubing Park, and Public Space Columns
Bonjour! Welcome to Renavie Espoir, which means Rebirth and Hope! This beautiful,
mountainous, ten-year-old city is located in southwestern Pennsylvania in the vicinity of the
twentieth century city of Pittsburgh. We chose this area because of its history of steel mills and
landfills, as well as its relative proximity to the rest of the country and international travel
stations. These ancient industrial areas were abandoned because of their toxic pollutants and
the excess of industrial waste in their landfills. However, to us, this area opens a whole realm of
possibilities to make a great city of the future. With our goals in mind, we decided to populate
our city with an abundance of public spaces by utilizing our highways and converting our
industrial areas into popular spaces that generate revenue and joyful memories.
We came together as a Future City team to decide what our interpretation of brownfields
and public spaces would be. Our interpretation of public spaces is a space provided by the city
where people can congregate, relax, and have a good time. Our citys public spaces include a
virtual reality vacation area on a former steel mill property and a year-round snow and water
tubing facility on a converted capped landfill adjacent to the former steel mill. We also utilized
our highways as public spaces divided into four columns, which will be discussed later. A
brownfield consists of a contaminated area that is no longer usable to the public. When we
reconfigured and capped the steel mill, we improved our citys health, decreased pollution, and
made our city look more attractive. The conversion of this land turned this area into a public
space that our citizens can enjoy year-round.
Before we reconstructed Pittsburgh into futuristic Renavie Espoir, we had to contain the
harmful chemicals that invaded the soil. In order to do this, we used a method that involved a
slurry wall. Building a slurry wall first requires securing the perimeter above the bedrock close to

Research Essay: Renavie Espoir

the beginning of the mantle. Using several civil and mechanical engineers, we excavated the
perimeter and stored the contaminated soil in a remote location for the time being. Then, we
combined clay and soil to create the slurry wall,
reinstated the original soil back where it came
from, and then capped it with geomembrane,
soil, and a wearing surface. This prevents future
leakages of pollutants that could end up in the
citizens drinking water. After we constructed the
slurry wall, we built structures on the premise.
The slurry wall helped to prevent widespread pollution throughout the city. Creating the slurry
wall allowed us to build safe innovative structures that previously we were unable to make.
There are some drawbacks and risks that come with building on a capped steel mill.
One drawback would be a fear of pollution. However, we would simply inform our visitors that
there is little to no chance of their children becoming exposed to even low levels of ground
pollution because of our expert engineers. Despite misconceptions, our construction on these
formerly contaminated sites is one hundred percent safe.
To the east of our virtual reality center location is the onsite landfill for the steel mill. This
landfill was capped before we inhabited the area. This makes it easier for us to set up our solar
panel field and our tubing park. We also didnt need to reconfigure the landfill because we made
the tubes so that they wind around the various benches, or the straight parts, of the landfill. The
solar panels also dont require much attention within the landfill. All we had to do was set them
up like regular solar fields.
Our public spaces are the pride of our city. Our main area is the virtual reality vacation
center over the top of the former steel mill plant. Our center revolves around the basic idea that

Research Essay: Renavie Espoir

families of the future may not have the time or money to go to an actual vacation destination.
Therefore, we decided to use the abandoned steel mill area to create a place where anyone can
go to anywhere in the world by walking to a central location that isnt too far away. The virtual
reality center is made of aerographite, an extremely lightweight but durable material that
withstands loads of pressure. In order to project the vision that the tourists are actually in the
city, we used a combination of headgear and projectors as well as actual objects. We used
many computer and electrical engineers so
we could produce such an engineering
marvel. Our virtual reality center goes on a
cycle of a different category every six
months and a different subcategory each
month. So, for example, our main category
would be Europe. Our subcategories would
be Paris, Barcelona, Dublin, and London,
providing an amazing experience for all. We also have all the Wonders of the World and famous
monuments on display.
Besides our virtual reality center, our city includes an all year tubing facility. During the
winter and late fall, its a snow tubing slope. In the summer and late spring, its an immense
water slide. It is located on the unoccupied side of our capped landfill. Our amazing slide twists
and turns along the staircase-like hill created by the configuration of the landfill. All year round
our inhabitants can enjoy an exciting thrill thats one hundred percent safe and local. Our water
slide opens on Memorial Day, and our snow tubing slope starts in mid-November. The winter
attraction ends in February, and our spring and summer attraction ends in mid-September. Our
all year tubing facility is made up of strong clear Plaskolite acrylic sheets that can hold up to fifty

Research Essay: Renavie Espoir

times the amount of pressure of more expensive materials. We chose this special material
because of its amazing qualities including its strength and flexibility. These special qualities help
to make our city futuristic, safe and enjoyable for everyone.
In order to make our public spaces
easily accessible to everyone in the
city, we built on the area in the middle
of our main roads and highways so
that our citizens could enjoy parks,
food trucks, shopping, and social
interaction. There are three main columns: a park with a food truck concourse, a commercial
area, and a soundproof quiet space for reflection. We chose this zone because the area
between the roads was originally dangerous for the public to access but in close proximity to all.
In order to transport our citizens safely to the section of their choice, we decided to use
conveyor belts that go underground like subways. These extremely fast conveyor belts are
made of the same durable material as our tubing facility. This public space is a special asset to
our city because of its individuality and futuristic qualities.
Our citys main zones are connected
to the virtual reality center and the
tubing facility by three highways called
the spokes of our city. Renavie Espoir
contains the three essential zones for a
successful city: residential, commercial,
and industrial. The citizens who wish to
travel around the city may use public or

Research Essay: Renavie Espoir

private transportation to arrive at their specific destination using either the main spoke roads or
the smaller roads connecting the surrounding subsections. In our residential sector, there are
multi-level apartments and all other types of housing, perfectly capable for holding more than
just the one hundred thousand people it currently has. In our commercial area, we have malls,
grocery stores, fast food chains, and many other places. In our residential sector are our
schools which provide top of the line education to our citizens. In our commercial sector, we
have our other government-owned operations like our hospitals and the police and fire
headquarters. At our city hall, we maintain our three percent tax rate. Our economy is booming
because of our loads of profits made off of our tourist attractions. In our industrial district, we
have our water and waste management areas and our manufacturing facilities which create jobs
and opportunities with our fellow cities domestically and overseas.
Renavie Espoir is an extraordinary and revolutionary city of the future. It is an ideal
choice of location for a futuristic human population that enjoys exploring unknown places but
cant travel far and wide. Our city not only has a great place where anyone can travel to a
specific location from what is practically his or her own backyard, but we also have many
smaller details that separate our city from boring and unstimulating cities of the past. We also
have great spaces between our roads where our citizens can gather. Not many cities can boast
about having great shops, food truck concourses, parks, and quiet areas for reflection at all, let
alone in the middle of what used to be seen as an extremely dangerous area for everyone. Our
city goes beyond expectations created by low-level cities of the past and defies what it means to
be a legendary city. So, come join us in Renavie Espoir, the redefining city of the future.

Word Count: 1500

Research Essay: Renavie Espoir

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