August 19, 2004

'Dome' estic bliss

By Bill Choy
Ashland Daily Tidings

Futuristic, "Zen-like" domes used around the world are being built right here in Ashland.

Pacific Domes has been building these unusual geodesic domes since 1980.

Pacific Domes founder Asha Deliverance sits in one of her company's geodesic structures a client is using for living space on Helman Street. Denise Baratta | Ashland Daily Tidings

The domes are used for a number of purposes. Some of their uses have included housing a car show in Hong Kong, hosting a celebrity party for movie star Leonardo DiCaprio and becoming a Hobbit hole for a company hawking a "Lord of the Rings" video game. Generally, they have more everyday uses such as a yoga studio, a guest house, or a long-term place to live.

According to Mark Hanson, operations supervisor for Pacific Domes "They're quite versatile and are perfect for those looking for a unique space. If you ever get into one, it's like, 'Wow, it's so neat.'"

The idea of a geodesic dome design came from the late R. Buckminster Fuller, an inventor, architect, engineer, mathematician, poet and cosmologist.

Fuller's lifelong goal was the development of "Comprehensive Anticipatory Design Science." This science was an attempt to anticipate and solve the major problems of humanity by providing "more and more life support for everybody, with less and less resources," according to Pacific Dome owner and founder Asha Deliverance.

The company, which has a staff of 15, makes domes ranging from 16 to 60 feet tall in their space on East Hersey Street.

The domes are covered with water and mildew resistant, flame retardant fabrics such as cotton, vinyl and polyester. The frames of the domes are galvanized steel tubing bolted together. Windows can also be added to a dome to give owners a clear view of their natural surroundings.

Hanson said they receive calls and orders from around the country and world on a number of projects.

They are in the planning stages of designing a 30-foot dome for a company that plans to sink it off the coast of Egypt in an attempt to make an artificial coral reef. They are also making domes for an ecological tourism organization based in the Swiss Alps.

"It's really neat to be a part of so many cool projects," Hanson said.

Deliverance said the domes perfectly fit Fuller's motto to "do more with less," and added, "I love to see beauty and I love the designs we do."

The domes can be put up quickly, taking from an hour to several days depending on size. They can also be moved easily, Deliverance said. A 30 foot dome can fit in a Ford Aerostar minivan, with only the rear seat removed, she said.

The domes can also be lived in long-term. Hanson, along with his wife and young daughter, lived in a 24-foot dome for two years in Talent.

"It was wonderful," he said. "It was so open that you become aware of the natural surroundings around you. You don't have a thick, insular wall. You're connected to nature. You can hear the birds and the deer pattering around outside."

The domes can also withstand heavy snow, rain and winds.

Once, during a storm, a large oak tree fell on Hanson's dome, snapping the tree in half.

The dome received minor damage - a little more than $100 - and was repaired in less than a day.

"It's quite durable," he said.

Mary Ann Jones of Ashland has had a 16-foot dome on her property on the outskirts of town for more than a year. She uses the dome in a number of ways, such as guest housing and a place to do meditation and yoga.

"It's just been good for a variety of things," she said. "I like the fact that you're in a circular space. It gives you a different feeling than being in a rectangular room. I think you just get a feeling of being cozy, almost like being embraced by the space. ... I like that it's very practical and you don't have wasted space in the corners. It's very inviting."

Deliverance plans to retire next year and to set up subsidies of her dome business all around the world.

"I believe that the domes are a futuristic home that give people the ability to move into nature in a really simple way," she said. "It's important to spread the word."