The Domes

Inside a Dome

Location

Baggins End

(South of Orchard Park Cir. at Orchard Park Dr.)

Email

<domies AT ucdavis DOT edu>

Website

http://www.thedomes.us/domeweb-current/index.html

Established

1972

The Domes, (AKA Baggins End Innovative Housing), is an on-campus commune. Consisting of 14 polyurethane-insulated fiberglass domes located in the Sustainable Research Area at the western end of Orchard Road, it is home to 28 UCD students. It may very well be one of the oldest cooperative communities in the nation!

• Established: 1972
  

• Number of residents per dome: 2
  

• Number of domes: 14 (numbered 2-15¹)
  

• Dome Amenities: Loving neighbors, organic garden, Kitchen, Bathroom (shower or bathtub), Living room, 2 Bedrooms (varies by dome), heating, skylight and swing (some domes), freedom to perform your own dome construction ...
  

• Community Amenities: Chickens, more organic garden, materials yard, tree forts, love, naked neighbors, fruit trees galore, community dinners, fire pit, bike church, rope swing, best free pile ever, materials yard, garden tool shed, construction tool shed (with power tools), horse shoe arena, compost, greenhouse, freedom to build most anything you want, herb garden, ... the nicest chunk of land on campus.
  

• A large common green in the center
  

• Decision Process: consensus
  

• Monday-Thursday vegetarian potluck dinner at 7:00PM. (Exception: during winter quarter, dinner starts at 6:00PM.)
  

• Must be a UCD student to live there.
  

• Level of Awesomeness: mega-awesome
  

• How should I apply to live there? Start by coming to a dinner.

As members of the Domes Community, we choose:

• To Promote and exemplify a lifestyle that incorporates the following:
  

• living practices including organic agriculture and permaculture, low-impact construction, energy efficiency, alternative forms of waste management and the general reduction of our ecological footprint, which allow us to meet our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs.
  

• interdependence on levels ranging from emotional to economic.
  

• understanding of differences and conflict resolution through the consensus process.
  

• To encourage creativity, inspiration, initiative, personal growth and diversity.
  

• To structure our place and our community as an accessible educational resource for each other, the University of California at Davis, and the greater community of the world.

Each of the 14 domes has a living area, kitchen, bathroom, and loft and can house two students. According to Ramona Pulido, who wrote an article about the domes last year, each dome was constructed of three to four inches of polyurethane foam surrounded by a fiberglass shell that serves to protect inhabitants from outside elements. The white exterior and thick insulation keeps them cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

They were originally built on the Western edge of campus.

A dome with the door open, 2006.

The Domes opened in the fall of 1972. According to Doug Ryen, who oversaw the Domes for UC Davis for a number of years, the community was proposed in the 1960’s by a group of students who wanted to create less expensive housing options on campus. “A few different proposals were made by designers/builders for ways to accomplish this. Ultimately the dome style was chosen.”

“The buildings were constructed primarily by student volunteers under the direction of the contractor who proposed and designed the domes,” Ryen elaborated. There were to be 15, but the first dome collapsed during construction. The construction took about one year, and the students who volunteered their time and labor were the very first residents of what was to become the sustainable community of Baggins End.

This is what the Domes looked like in the beginning. Here are some photos of the birth of the domes.

The Domes Archives lived in Herb Hall (the storage shed) until 1997, when they were transferred to the UCD Library Special Collections. There were approximately 15 boxes of photos and historical documents transfer to the UCD Library at that time.

Welcome

View From Orchard Park Drive Chamomile Another Dome Inside the Greenhouse Unitrans bus found next to the Domes Inside a typical dome (2006).

Just south of Orchard Park, a little guy named Chamomile is leading a very good life. He's got a couple dozen friends who keep him company, and has the opportunity to eat quality vegetarian food every day. There is a flock of chickens to play with and a garden that Chamomile enjoys strutting around in. Chamomile is a long-time resident.

The residents of the Domes try to be as efficient with resources as possible. According to Amigo Cantisano, an Organic Agriculture Adviser and organic farmer, living sustainably involves “Minimizing pollution and causing the least amount of damage [to the earth] as possible; using local resources; growing your own food; eating food that is minimally processed; recycling; taking care of your health and your environment.”

In order for a community to achieve its goal of sustainability, it must work cooperatively. The Baggins End community is truly one of cooperation. Every second Sunday, the residents of the Domes gather to work together, usually in the gardens. Baggins End is part of the Student Housing Department and is owned by U.C. Davis. However, the residents do all of the work in the gardens and on the grounds.

The Domes are home to U.C. Davis students of varying backgrounds and majors. Justin Regnier, a graduate student in Transportation Technology and Policy, has lived at the Domes for nearly a year. According to Regnier, "Everyone does something. Gardening, pruning the trees, feeding the chickens-everyone contributes." Regnier believes that the Domes’ unique governing system is part of the appeal of the community. "The Domes are an experiment in sustainable living. We're self-governing, and all decisions are made by consensus. Communication and cooperation are important.”

In order to maintain their sustainable environment, residents of the Domes rely on consensus, a policy that requires compromise and communication. Members of the community are brought together to discuss an issue until a convergent decision is made. Rather than being a simple exercise in trading (I'll stop playing my music loud if you do your dishes), genuine consensus requires the development of relationships among members (we'll listen to music while we do the dishes together). New residents of the Domes go through non-violence and communication training, so that they will be better equipped to participate in the decision-making process. "The training teaches residents how to listen to others instead of how to make others listen," explained Regnier.

Because a very important aspect of any sustainable living community is the production of food, the residents of Baggins End are especially dedicated to their gardens. The Domes have an extensive organic garden that is maintained by both residents and members of the community. The garden consists of multiple areas designated for specific purposes, including an herb garden and greenhouse. An area called the DSA, or Domes Supported Agriculture, produces the bulk of the food grown in the community. Crops such as peas, garlic, onions, potatoes, eggplant and peppers are rotated year-round.

Rotating crops is a common practice in sustainable farming that offers huge benefits and results in higher yields. Cantisano explains that some plants require a lot of nutrients, called heavy-feeding plants, and can drain the soil of nitrogen in a short time. Legume plants, such as beans, peas, and clover, are low-feeding, and actually introduce nitrogen into the soil. Crop rotation prevents soil from becoming depleted of nutrients without having to use inorganic or chemical fertilizers.

The new greenhouse at the Domes, built by domies and friends, is another example of the community’s commitment to sustainability. As Regnier explained, the greenhouse is constructed so that the winter sun passes through the windows and hits a heat storing rear wall. The wall is constructed of rice straw and stucco, and retains heat. As the sun goes down, the rear wall emits heat, and keeps the greenhouse warm throughout the night. In the summer, the sun travels a different path in the sky, leaving the heat-retaining wall shaded. The greenhouse stays hot, but is able to cool during the evening.

In addition to caring for the gardens, the chickens and Chamomile the rooster, the Baggins End community provides assistance during the Whole Earth Festival and works with the Experimental College on coordinating garden space and resources for classes and courses. The community also offers “Informal networking and cooperation with the local agriculture community,” said Regnier.

While Baggins End is a residential area, members of the community are encouraged to visit the grounds and the people who live there. “We’re here and would like to see people,” explained Regnier.

Residents of the Domes prepare a community dinner Monday through Thursday nights every week, and take turns cooking the vegetarian and vegan meals. Many of the vegetables used are from the Domes’ organic garden. Visitors are encouraged to attend the potluck dinners, listed above.

The ubiquitous UC Davis printed map does an unbelievably bad job of showing the Domes on the map. Here is an accurate map of the Domes

• Jazz bus
  

• Residents have also been known to assist in facilitating the Sustainable Living Circus
  

• Other university programs from this era: Coffee House, Unitrans, Bike Barn, Experimental College, Whole Earth Festival

• There's Still No Place Like Dome Sacramento Bee 2007-08-08
  

• The Summer of Love Lives On UC Davis Magazine Summer 2007
  

• http://www.davisenterprise.com/story.php?id=101.2 Recent Enterprise Article on the Domes and Focus the Nation
  

• UC Newswatch: The Domes

Comments:

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2007-09-27 20:04:32   ahhhh! i can't wait for the reunion!! i'm actually looking forward to the work party. and of course the debauchery of fun and goodness. —JessicaRockwell

2007-12-16 16:19:56   I removed the 35th Anniversary Reunion notice. If that's a problem, we should talk, but the self-appointed wiki nerds seem to agree: wiki's aren't governed by consensus. It's information anarchy, and that's exactly what makes it so useful. —bryan.jungers

2008-04-12 14:02:48   Can anyone come to the potluck dinner? I've always wanted to meet the denizens of this wondrous community. —SunjeetBaadkar

• yup. everyone's welcome to go to the dinners. you may want to call ahead to make sure it's still happening and confirm the time, as well as what dome number it's in. —JessicaRockwell
  

2008-11-10 21:54:36   What is the number we can call to find out? —ArianeMetz

2009-01-25 18:08:21   The J St Co-op has room(s) available after March 20th. Interested parties should contact us soon. peace. —PxlAted

2009-03-09 21:41:49   This makes me wish I was a vegetarian! —BrookeB

2009-04-05 17:05:27   I have been inside one of the domes and I have to say they are pretty grimy and gross. They might as well have a dirt floor. The rent is only $200 a month, but keep in mind that you can be homeless for free. —JanethN.

2009-08-25 11:10:36   one time when i was really little me and my friend went over there and they let us pick their mulberries off their trees. there was this really nice girl, amie i think. and one time we were invited to have dinner. it was actually held outside and everyone brought homemade food to share. —hobojobo

2009-11-05 20:16:30   So, about how much does it cost to live in a dome these days? —JacquelineD