Can Elk Grove Handle A Zaha Hadid?

Back in 2006, Elk Grove had visions of being the next Bilbao and held an international design competition to find their Gehry. Hadid designed what they were seeking, an eye-catching Civic center complex.

"It was a chapter, though, that ended with a recession." writes Rob Hunter. "And the idea gathered dust until last summer, when the city resumed its relationship with Ms. Hadid's firm to fashion the center's master plan, the process in which the scale and proximity of the structures is determined, though the actual design of individual buildings will be decided later."

The new city council have compared the design to an octopus, a starfish and an "animal from another planet."