Reclaiming Rocky Flats: Revealing Buried Cold War History

Abstract

This thesis examines the reclamation of abandoned Cold War military infrastructure, where history has literally been buried by efforts to restore these sites to their original states. The contamination present at many of these obsolete military installations prevents true restoration from being possible, leading to a simulacrum of nature at best. The Cold War history found on these landscapes contains valuable lessons for the public about the danger inherent in nuclear weapons manufacture and proliferation. Engaging in reclamation brings new life to these sites as places of dark tourism, where architectural interventions facilitate an educational mission, while protecting visitors from the contamination. This thesis focuses on Rocky Flats, a secretive Department of Energy plant located near Denver, Colorado. During its operation from 1952 to 1992 the plant produced plutonium triggers and other components for nuclear weapons. The facility is alleged to have leaked radioactive and other toxic materials into the surrounding landscape. The contamination of the site is alleged to have caused exposure related illnesses in plant employees and civilians living nearby. The proposed architectural Intervention at Rocky Flats, guided by the design strategies of viewing, monitoring, and learning reveals history and reclaims the site as a place of dark tourism. This thesis presents a model applicable to other similarly contaminated sites in order to raise public awareness of the Cold War history that is typically lost to restoration efforts.