"Discovering the Utopian Dream in Ave Maria"
Origins and Vision
The city was willed into existence by Tom Monaghan, the founder of Domino’s Pizza. After selling his stake in the chain for $1 billion, Monaghan, a devout Catholic and collector of Frank Lloyd Wright memorabilia, set out to design an idyllic Catholic town free of “premarital sex, contraceptives and pornography.” The university reopened in Florida in 2007 and has become the major employer in the area.Collier County signed off on a thousand-acre expansion last year, showing the continued interest in this unique community. It may seem like a nightmare to some, a prison of patriarchy and conformity, but to others, it is a safe space for family and communion.
What do you do when you disagree with the broader community? As the economist Albert O. Hirschman argued, you have two options. One is to stick around and exercise “voice,” making your case for why things should be different. Ave Maria has seen efforts in this direction, such as the university faculty member's stance and the ACLU's potential litigation.
Historical Precedents
American history is filled with examples of voluntary attempts to build utopian communities. The Puritans decamped to the Massachusetts Bay, kicking off a series of exits that led to the founding of Hartford and Providence. In colonial America, Philadelphia Quakers aimed to create an Enlightenment-inspired garden city, and in Baltimore, founders envisioned Protestants and Catholics living together in harmony.Mormons also turned religious city building into a high art. They founded cities like Kirtland and Independence, with various visions and experiments. In Utah, they built Zion with plans sketched out by Joseph Smith, imagining an endless grid of giant blocks and wide streets.
Back in Florida, Ave Maria follows in this tradition. It may not be the City of God, but it has its own unique urban design. A massive church anchors the city, towering over a traditional town center with apartments over shops. Street names invoke Pope John Paul II and various saints, and random statues of the Virgin Mary dot the city.
Modern Utopian Experiments
In California, utopian experimentation was once at its peak. From Robert Owen's communal industrialization in New Harmony to John Humphrey Noyes' free love colony in Oneida, and the Georgists' communities demonstrating the wisdom of a land value tax, California was a hotbed of ideas.Today, California Forever is an ambitious plan to build a walkable, mixed-use city on 50,000 acres of ranchland at the edges of the Bay Area. But with restrictive regulations, such projects are becoming increasingly rare.
In Florida, new urbanism emerged in the Florida Panhandle. Seaside, a master-planned beach town, served as the proof of concept and led to the refinement of similar communities like Rosemary Beach and Alys Beach. The Villages in Central Florida is another example, a retirement community with its own unique infrastructure and rules.
Challenges and Future
Building a new city is expensive, and attracting jobs is crucial. Ave Maria has a large and growing job center in the form of Ave Maria University, but it still faces challenges. The housing market collapse in 2007 deflated some of the grander urban designs, and the arrival of a Baptist church at the edge of town shows the changing landscape.However, Ave Maria retains its independence in at least one respect. It still lacks a Domino’s Pizza, adding to its unique identity.
Whether you like it or not, Ave Maria is a part of the American experiment in utopian living. It shows that even in a pluralistic society, the idea of building a better place persists.