Cities and towns exist largely as economic, occasionally cultural or educational totems. Lacking a fundamental economic basis will doom any planned city.<p>There's a history of "intentional communities". Many are thought of as utopian communities, and as largely (though not entirely) failed, though this misses some notable successes lurcking in plain view. There are a number of successful intentional community models.<p>The first is religious communities which <i>have</i> sustained themselves. In the US, notably Menonite, Amish, and Mormon communities, though there are numerous others. In the case of the Mormons, the community is the size of a state (and strongly influences most of its neighbours).<p>The second is the college town. For the past century colleges and universities, even comparably small ones, have proved robust self-perpetuating instutions, as both demand for an educated population and funding for education (and research, and sport) have been generous. That tide may be shifting, along with a potential trend to decentralised or remote education, though I suspect it's got life in it yet.<p>Several commercial motivations have proved workable at least in instances, notably tourist, retirement, vacation, and (as noted, viz Marfa, TX), art colonies. Odds may be longer here, though opportunities also more numerous. The key problem is that fads and fashions are fickle. Retirement populations, as with college students, tend to move on after a few years, if to different prospects. Many of the advantages of a student population: youth, health, vitality, openness to experience, credulity, are lacking in the older set.<p>Government projects are another option, with some outposts (Los Alamos National Laboratory and its impact on Santa Fe, NM, Macdonald Observatory and Ft. Davis, TX, Cape Canaveral and the Florida coast) having a profound local impact.<p>Otherwise, a town is generally reliant on what's at hand for economic initiative. In what I presume is West Texas, that's some highway travel, a current boomlette of oil and gas activity, cattle ranching, a few notable cultural outposts, and some degree of border activity. There's also wind and solar development in the area (there's a notable solar technician training centre across the stateline near Clovis, NM), as well as possible other activity I'm unaware.<p>But lacking that, "build it and they will come" seems rather unlikely. The remaining possibility is that the vision Wrath Of Gnon espouses will appeal to the specific niche they hope to attract, in which case there is limited likelihood of success.<p>That said: expressing the plan in terms of goal, economic basis, architecture, and design principles would help. The economic base element is conspicuously missing.<p>Regulatory, governance, and conflict-resolution elements should also be explored.