Public Markets were the predominant way Americans shopped for food before the Second World War. Public Markets were replaced by supermarkets that came to dominate the grocery scene. A supermarket is the last point in the supply chain of the production and distribution of food and is situated in most American communities by corporations. Alternatives to the supermarket exist in the form of cooperatives or as farm stores.
In recent years there has been an increased interest in food. Consumers expect it to be ecologically sustainable, healthy for our bodies, and everything we consume to be good in its implications to the planet. This trend in conscious choice is further extended to where we go to shop for food. Expectations of corporate practices in the facility design of grocery stores rise as the general public grows increasingly aware of ecological issues.
Ecological place-making and consumerism pose a fundamental conflict. The former assumes the intricacies and complexities of human behavior and the constraints imposed by the environment. The latter aspires to simple, general laws that cover all possible economic arrangements, such as technology, in a way that can be used by businesses. Ecological design, which is rooted in competing conceptions of environmentalism, however, should precede technological strategies in sustainable building design. This thesis adopts a framework of a social constructivist's perspective of ecological place-making, as proposed by Simon Guy and Graham Farmer, to help situate the trends of the emergent culture of sustainable architecture.
This thesis analyzes the trends in the architecture of grocery store facilities that offer natural, organic, and local foods. What are the alternatives to a supermarket in America today and what is the role of ecological place-making in each case? The analysis is about how our choice and awareness as a consumer, resident, or community member influences the design of food facilities. How does the trade of food influence design approaches and how does this further impact the environment as a whole and the ecology of the communities where we live?