Comfort within your community is based on finding a reason to interact with others who work and live in your community and getting to know them. My proposal is to create a community center based off of the idea of creating a central point in which the public functions. The center will be in a rural location with easy access to outdoor facilities. The users of this space will be the general public with a range of income varying from low-income to middle class families.

      In creating this community center, ideas of fostering sustainability, localvore, and growth will be able to be represented strongly within one design. The problem with communities today is that the members of the community do not feel comfortable in approaching functions or know when they are included. By being able to find what makes people comfortable both within the functions and resources of a space and the approachableness in design, the community center can be a successful building. It is shown that nature has an effect on how we develop as a community. By introducing the effects of food and creating community learning and dining events, the community can be formed into what really is a large family.

      I will approach the gap in research through physical example how all the components of environmental psychology is displayed in space. I will contrast both prospect and refuge and make use of different public spaces inspired by the architecture we create in our own private paces. A large emphasis will be put on multi-use spaces, where the public can utilize and create spaces that work for them. They will also be able to use all spaces for what they cannot create at home. Examples of this are study spaces, group meeting spaces, and music space to jam or perform.

      A prominent factor of this community center is to be able to learn and grow as a community. Workshops and classes will be held here on a variety of topics. Whether it is as complex as learning how to create and profit from a personal business or if it is simply to learn how to bake a pie. Education is what builds active communities and pushes growth. By having all classes open to the community, there is no discrimination towards those who have a GED and those with PHDs. By creating spaces that bring neighbors together, we are recreating our communities into more unified places. Knowing your neighbor is much more powerful than one can think. To feel safe in your community, you must know who lives there and be able to come together as one.