Much like a floating Club Med, “The Swimming City” by Andras Gyorfi could be the perfect solution for ocean-bound adventure seekers. As most of us have daydreamed about abandoning our complex land-ridden existence for the simple life at sea, Gyorfi – the winner of Seastead’s first design contest – has brought this idea to new heights. His design is playfully inviting, with many recreational facilities including a large swimming pool, outdoor amphitheater, helicopter landing pad, and shaded marina.
Featuring soft earth tones and rooftop gardens, “The Swimming City” appeals to our childhood fantasies as well our current need for living an eco-conscious lifestyle. Around every corner, this fanciful city is chock full of surprising architectural details. Each area of the floating wonderland is easily accessed by beautifully landscaped walking paths, and the building’s windows vary in shape and size, adding to its unique character.
As for now, we can only imagine the stress-free adventure and exploration one would find aboard this island paradise, and we will be holding our breath for the day when This “Swimming City” blows the current luxury cruise ship out of the water.
+ Seasteading Institute
+ Pic Studio
Via National Geographic
Simply sticking greenroofs on buildings do NOT make them “eco-conscious”. Come on inhabitat, its got helipads, THE least efficient way of travelling. Shall we fly in all the food? I fail to see any ‘design’ here – its blue peter badge winner stuff. File this one along with ludicrous, unsubstantiated designs like ‘Moon Cities’ and ‘Wind Turbines on Jets’.
I can’t believe this concept won a competition of any type. Where’s the practical & aesthic merit to it?
“Featuring soft earth tones and rooftop gardens, “The Swimming City” appeals to our whimsical childhood fantasies as well our current need for living an eco-conscious lifestyle.”
I wish it was so simple to achieve “eco-conscious”. In my opinion, this seems more similiar to a floating slab of concrete. There’s no mention to any of the problems a development like this would encounter such as waste, power, bouyancy, rising sea levels & a little thing called overall sustainability!
This idea may be useful the day that climate change-related sea level rises have flooded many of our present cities. In the meantime I personally prefer to svim IN the city, although that can also be threatened by climate change.
http://www.sweden.se/eng/Home/Work-live/Sustainability/blog-about-sustainability/Swimming-in-the-city/
Indeed. I didn’t realize you could use Sim City for these design competitions. Moreover, the (likely) photoshopped textures, which just happen to resemble organic matter, don’t count as “eco-conscious” features.
2-helipads? And a large, gas-guzzling, planing yacht anchored nearby? Is a sailboat too obvious or something? I’m also amazed they didn’t even consider including some solar panels or wind-turbines (the ocean and wind tend to go together, or so I hear).
Window to the future, no; green, no. A New York City block suspended in water in sight of land – yes.
I think I would rather go to an island. This city block defeats the purpose of going on a cruise.
I think everyone else has made strong points. This is nothing more than very talented use of Photoshop and some 3d rendering program. There is nothing eco-conscious about it. It doesn’t mention how electicity is produced, or how waste is managed, for where/how food is produced.
To make this really something super they should add a means of producing electricity and fresh water, I read an amazing article in Popular science, about an Australian man, who invented under water balloons which move back and forth in the under ocean currents to produce fresh water and electricity. Something like that would be beautiful here.
Also, if a sustainable means of producing fresh water was availible some floating hydroponic greenhouses would make this a bit more practical and much more eco friendly.