The Urbanist (Monocle)

Episode: Want to find utopia? Try Columbia, Maryland

Date: September 4, 2025
Host: Andrew Tuck

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode explores urban utopias—cities and projects intentionally designed for better living. The main segments include:

• A deep dive into Columbia, Maryland, a planned utopian city built for inclusivity and social harmony.
• An interview on Julia West House, Oregon’s tallest mass timber affordable housing, and the transformative power of intentional design.
• A conversation about the 2025 Aga Khan Award for Architecture, examining how architectural excellence is recognized worldwide, especially in Muslim societies.

1. Columbia, Maryland: A Utopia Made Real (00:29–09:16)

Report by: Charlotte MacDonald Gibson
Key Points:

• Background:
  • Columbia was envisioned in the 1960s by developer James Rouse as an inclusive utopian city—a “garden for the growing of people.”
  • Rouse secretly purchased thousands of acres between Washington, DC, and Baltimore to launch the project, codenamed "Shangri La."
• Design & Structure:
  • Organized as ten villages around a manmade lake, with all necessities—schools, shops, and worship spaces—within walking distance.
  • 114 miles of pedestrian paths and 3,600 acres of green space create a highly walkable, communal environment.
  • Housing includes single-family homes and apartment blocks to ensure socioeconomic diversity.
• Social Innovations:
  • Columbia was notably integrated, welcoming all racial backgrounds even before the Civil Rights Act.
  • Early marketing materials featured racially mixed families (05:01), and Rouse took action against realtor discrimination by sending undercover buyers.
  • Religious inclusivity was designed in, with interfaith centers (rather than single-use buildings) serving multiple denominations side-by-side.

Memorable Quotes:

• "He used to call Columbia, Maryland a garden for growing people. He was interested in creating a city that enabled people to become the best versions of themselves."
  — Historian David Stebbin (03:11)
• "Even though he might not have said that out loud, he was doing it through his actions."
  — Erin Berry, on Rouse’s inclusion efforts (05:15)
• "No one is allowed a private mailbox in Columbia. Each street has a communal one, forcing everyone out of their homes and into the social orbit of their neighbours."
  — Charlotte MacDonald Gibson (07:05)
• "Something as simple as the mailbox being in a place where everybody has to come to that mailbox, that is just the simplest thing. And yet you get to know your neighbors that way."
  — Shirley Harden, resident (07:33)

Challenges & Lessons:

• Current Issues: Columbia faces challenges of success—transport infrastructure is strained, and rising real estate prices threaten affordability.
• Key Lesson:
  • The essential features of a livable city are not high-tech, but simple: green space, mixed-use development, walkability, affordable housing, and a clear sense of shared purpose (07:50).

2. Oregon’s Tallest Mass Timber Affordable Housing: Julia West House (09:16–18:39)

Interviewee: Eric Payne, CEO of Community Development Partners (CDP)
Key Points:

• CDP’s Mission:

  • Founded in 2011, the organization is dedicated to developing affordable housing that goes beyond basic shelter, aiming for transformative impacts and long-term community engagement.
  • CDP integrates art, ecology, and intentional, context-sensitive design into all projects.

• Julia West House Project:

  • A 12-story, 90-unit permanent supportive housing building designed for people exiting homelessness, focused on seniors and marginalized groups.
  • Will be Oregon’s tallest mass timber building, using sustainable cross-laminated timber (CLT).
  • CDP plans to maintain ownership for at least 15 years, underlining their commitment to stewardship.

• Collaborative Model:

  • Partners include Northwest Pilot Project (case management for low-income seniors), Native American Rehabilitation Association (culturally specific services), and Community for Positive Aging (wellness programs, technology support).

• Trauma-informed Design:

  • The building prioritizes biophilic and trauma-sensitive design, with natural materials and exposed mass timber to foster a sense of safety, beauty, and healing.
  • Recognizes the challenge for people transitioning from trauma or homelessness to feel secure—design is seen as a key support.

Memorable Quotes:

• "Affordable housing should transcend the fundamental goal of providing simply like low cost shelter. It should be transformative for residents and for the communities where we're building."
  — Eric Payne (10:04)
• "Having a space that's beautiful and feels inspiring and welcoming—...it has this trauma informed sensitivity to people who do have a background that in many cases includes trauma… just adds an element of softness to their environment they’ll be calling home."
  — Eric Payne (16:09)

3. The Aga Khan Award for Architecture: Recognizing Contextual Excellence (18:39–30:43)

Guest: Farrokh Darakshani, Director of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture
Key Points:

• Award Overview:

  • Established in 1977 by His Highness the Aga Khan, the triennial award recognizes projects that serve Muslim communities, but is not limited by faith or geography.
  • Expands the definition of “architecture” to include slum upgrading, engineering, restoration, and other interventions influencing society.
  • The award focuses on projects completed within the past 1–6 years that have a measurable impact and can be contextualized within their societies.

• Selection Process:

  • Projects are nominated anonymously worldwide (300–500 per cycle).
  • A master jury independently shortlists and ultimately selects the winners; the Aga Khan himself does not choose the projects.
  • Projects are judged across typologies and regions, focusing on quality of life improvements.

• Regional Impact:

  • Many winners are from Muslim-majority regions (Middle East, Asia, North Africa), but inclusivity and cultural service are central.
  • Architecture can challenge and broaden perceptions of countries often misrepresented in the media.

• 2025 Award Highlights:

  • Seven winners, including the Jahad Metro Plaza in Tehran (an arched brick metro station), flexible rural prototypes in Bangladesh, heritage tourism interventions in Egypt and on Hormuz Island, social-cultural spaces in Palestine, and a multi-faith center for the Hui in China.

Memorable Quotes:

• "Architecture is really something which really touches all levels of societies…When you do a bad building, or any building, it stays there for hundreds of years. You cannot just erase it."
  — Farrokh Darakshani (22:06)
• "Sense of belonging is very important. When you create an architectural project, you feel you belong to it…you have to live in architecture. So films are a very, very good way of expressing [this]."
  — Farrokh Darakshani (26:15)
• "You create a system and the system multiplies and that can help so many people. And that's the impact..."
  — Farrokh Darakshani, on the Bangladesh project (28:42)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Columbia, Maryland: The Utopian Suburb
  [00:29] Introduction to utopian communities
  [03:11] James Rouse’s “garden for growing people”
  [04:40] Social and racial integration in a mid-1960s context
  [05:15] Marketing and actual practice of inclusion
  [07:05] Community-building mailbox design
  [07:50] Columbia as a model for “letting people in” vs. exclusion

• Julia West House and Mass Timber Affordability
  [09:16] Transition to Julia West House project
  [10:04] CDP’s mission—transformative, not just affordable housing
  [12:20] Specifics of building design and partnership models
  [16:09] Biophilic, trauma-sensitive design philosophy

• Aga Khan Award for Architecture
  [18:39] Background and legacy of the award
  [20:39] Selection methodology and evolving focus
  [22:06] Lasting societal impact through buildings
  [23:59] Criteria for recognition; context of Muslim societies
  [26:15] Architecture as lived experience and media perception
  [28:42] Highlighting Bangladesh and other notable winners

Tone & Insights

• Inclusive, forward-thinking, quietly optimistic: The episode emphasizes simple innovations and empathetic planning as real keys to utopian living.
• Critical, but hopeful: Both the praise and critiques (e.g., Columbia’s growing pains) are balanced, and the show promotes attainable, community-oriented models.
• Global perspective: Touches on American suburbs, sustainable housing in Portland, and architectural excellence in the Muslim world—underscoring universality in thoughtful design.

Notable Moments

• The unique holiday interfaith events in Columbia; residents naturally knowing community members across different faiths (06:39).
• The “communal mailbox”—an understated but powerful tool for fostering neighborhood connection and inclusion (07:33).
• Cross-disciplinary partnerships in affordable housing, integrating trauma-sensitive design and culturally tailored services for seniors and marginalized groups (13:36).
• The Aga Khan Award’s deliberate focus on contextual, locally resonant designs, challenging architectural stereotypes (26:15, 28:42).

For further information on the Aga Khan Award for Architecture and its 2025 winners, visit akdn.org.