Northern California Quail: Harbin's Properties as Expressions of its Vision

Harbin ethnography:


... So, Harbin as place with pools, and vision, welcomes people through its gate, and some stay, become part of the community, and a few develop their own businesses on Harbin property.

So, while Heart Consciousness Church's properties, as places, have differential economic value, they are also all expressions of Harbin's vision, emerging since 1972, and thus their economic significance, or potential, doesn't play an important role in defining their future. The Harbin property and the new Diamond J Ranch are owned and operated by HCC, while Sierra Hot Springs is only operated by HCC, not owned, in a somewhat passive manner. For example, these places aren't being developed for condominiums and maximum profit, perhaps due to a Harbin-informed conservation-oriented ethos, shaped significantly by the 1960s. And the various vendors, and single-proprietor businesses on Harbin property, also have their place-situatedness, and economic value, under the HCC organizational umbrella. One hippy vendor has told me he has to continually negotiate with the M.D.s ('managing directors') about the terms of his place on the grassy area across from the Gazebo, a little ways up from the Labyrinth. And there's relatively little travel between residents at Harbin and residents at Sierra Hot Springs, for example. These two communities of HCC residents are kinds of tribes, located in place. The new Diamond J ranch which is quite close to Harbin Hot Springs, probably has more traffic from Harbin Hot Springs, than Sierra Hot Springs has with Harbin, but what the Diamond J ranch is going to be used for is still taking shape.

The Harbin property and especially the most-frequented Mainside area, as topography, have fairly familiar people flow-patterns, as a kind of platform, even. ...













(http://scott-macleod.blogspot.com/2011/03/northern-california-quail-harbins.html - March 9, 2011)