An arcology is an all-inclusive edifice, sometimes called a “city in a box.” It achieves ecological and economic efficiency by putting all types of space usage — residential, commercial, industrial, civic, and such — in immediate proximity to each other, thus minimizing or eliminating transportation needs.
This project is to build such a structure over the Willamette River, creating 828,000 units of municipally owned housing and associated industrial, commercial, and civic entities, directly adjacent to downtown. This will meet the housing needs of about a third of the projected population increase. It will require a number of subsidiary projects, such as Modular Structural Carbon Fiber and Active Solar windows.