Re-Ligare

By fostering and celebrating not-doing, not-having, stopping, and wholeness, the new Re-Ligare Facility in downtown San Diego’s east village embraces the urban fabric and reapplies its rigid pattern to a simple and pure volume. 

With the use of steel, the volume is to be elevated above the street level, floating in a sense of tranquility that transitions the institute within a public realm. In the rearrangement of fifteen foot by fifteen foot cells, margins of program are slightly overlapped with open air green space to create multiple instances of connectivity and interaction among different programmatic elements, while still maintaining a sense of interdependency. 

The building is to become a sanctuary for “finding, studying, enjoying, and developing being.” It will provide an urban retreat from illness that promotes healthy living, and cultivates a re-connection for individuals and collective bodies. From a simple meditation space to an open air garden, with steel construction, the building is provided with a great quality of elegance that highlights a phenomenological presence at all levels and scales. 

The high yield strength of the buildings steel construction allows for longer spans with smaller members; opening floor plans to spacious layouts, and supports heavier loads; enabling large gardens and soothing bodies of water to be dispersed throughout various levels.  Multiple gardens with a wide variety of tastes are placed throughout the rooftop levels soaking up the southern Californian sun.   

With multiple fruits and vegetables, Re-Ligare produce can be harvested and ripened on site, ultimately to be shared with the public at the organic juice bar and café, to promote a healthier sense of living and share the affirmation, appreciation and support of all life.  This is Re-Ligare, let’s begin being and become re-connected with ourselves others and nature.