The state-built communal house of Ryshembrock.
Illegal trailer park in Ryshembrock.
A peripheral block (Oceana: outbackni dedin, IPA: /ɒ:t̪bakˠni 'd̪ɛd̪in/, or, informal, oubi /'ɒ:bi/) is a semi-legal settlement in Oceana which has been created in order to repopulate agricultural areas and boost economic activities there. In general, peripheral blocks are composed of a few premanifactured container homes (made of steel plates) and stalls, as well as other agricultural buildings. Currently, there are three peripheral blocks and many more scheduled. The creation of peripheral blocks was proposed by Oceana Governor Oos Wes Ilava in his ambitious 2014 Plan in August 2013[1]. His main motivation for moving people from the built-up areas to the rural areas lied in the fact that Oceana was the state with the highest unemployment rate of Lovia (over 10% of the working population). While the urban areas coped with a very high unemployment level, up to 14% in East Hills, the rural areas had significantly lower percentages. Therefore, his plan was to focus on agricultural development, such as increased production of grains, wine production, and lavender. His plan included:
- A neighborhood building stop in Hurbanova and East Hills (at least until 2015).
- Several hamlets and villages should be appointed as "growth hamlets", for example Sternaw.
- Local traditions and cultures should be safeguarded however. Therefore "peripheral blocks" should be built, consisting of several farms near the hamlets, for example the location of the former hamlet Ryshembrock could be used for a peripheral block of Bardeyow (a few hundred meters further), which legally still belongs to Bardeyow. As a consequence, the National Settlement Order does not have to be updated.
- Forestal areas should be cleared to make room for agriculture.
- An Agricultural School should be set up, where pupils can go to after finish Secundary Education.
Executive side[]
While most of his 2014 Plan was never realised due to the Burenian invasion of Lovia and lack of a competent executive branch in the local government, some small peripheral blocks were realised, of which two were created with government instructions and one was set up more or less illegally, but it is being tolerated by the state government. The peripheral blocks are:
- Nortni Squolnidedin, near Skelington (22 inhabitants; set up illegally in 2014).
- Novededin, near Skelington (29 inhabitants; set up by the State Government in 2014).
- Ryshembrock, near Bardeyow (46 inhabitants; the first peripheral block to be set up, by the State Government in 2014).
Apart from these peripheral blocks, several others have been proposed, including on the site of the former hamlets Antnitz, Lacknitz, That Pynt, and near the former Fade Dutch settlements. However, most of these have been rejected by the Oceana State Government as they are situated too far from already existing hamlets. (see also: Peripheral block#Proposed sites) Presently, 97 people live in peripheral blocks, all of which are located in Southern Oceana, where the inhabitants of this type of settlement make up approximately one-third of the entire population of the district.
Shortly after the creation of the peripheral blocks, several issues were noted, such as ethnic issues; most, if not all, inhabitants of the peripheral blocks are full-blood Oceana people, creating a segregation from the multicultural Oceana society. Other issues include high crime rates, as the peripheral blocks are located outside of police range, smuggling and production of drugs and other illegal products is increasingly becoming a problem, slum-formation due to built-up of trailers, as the peripheral blocks tend to attract underpriviliged people, which might be considered white trash, and developmental issues, such as illegal clearing of forest grounds, one-sided employment opportunities, pollution, domestic violence, and keeping children from going to school. Thusfar, the Oceana government has not yet addressed, or even officially reacted to, these issues.
Proposed sites[]
The following sites are (or were) proposed for a new peripheral block, and were officially submitted to the State Government:
- Antnitz, former hamlet, proposed early 2013. This site was chosen for a possible tourist destination for hikes and the history of the former hamlet. The State of Oceana officially rejected the site in June 2014, because of bad accessibility as well as environmental concerns.
- Lacknitz, former hamlet, proposed in December 2013. This site has been proposed for the creation of a Polish peripheral block. Its main function would be agriculture. It was officially rejected in June 2014, along with Antniz, because of bad accessibility as well as legal issues concerning land ownership. The proposers made a new submission in March 2015, which is still pending.
- Gelnitz, proposed in March 2014. The site is located south of Dubnitz and is proposed as a trial location for wine production outside of the Oceana Wine Region. As of April 2015, the site is still pending.
- Brezno, proposed in July 2014. The site is located near the former Fade Dutch settlements and is proposed as a touristic peripheral block under Skelington. As of April 2015, the site is still pending.
- Modra, proposed in August 2014. The site is located in the Beaver River Mouth area and is proposed as an agricultural and touristic peripheral block under Newmouth.
- Kremnitz, proposed in September 2014. The site is located near Boynitz. It is proposed as an ethnic peripheral block to diminish the pressure from recent British settlers in the region. While not officially rejected, several sources claim that the State of Oceana is not willing to accept new peripheral blocks on ethnic reasons.
- Snina, proposed in September 2014. Snina is located at the road junction from Hurbanova to the Northern and the Southern Wine Region. A commonly cited argument for this location is that it already is connected to the state transportation system by Bus Service Oceana, and that it can serve as a bridge between the Northern Wine Region on one hand, and the Southern Wine Region on the other. While the location looks promising, there are still several administrative issues, mainly due to its location on the border of both Wine Regions.
Lay-out[]
Map of the peripheral block near Ryshembrock.
In general, the peripheral blocks are rather randomly constructed. Even those planned by the state government could not be considered examples of good urban planning. There is no grid lay-out, like in many planned cities and towns, also in Lovia, and they only have one single entrance point. The peripheral blocks created by the state government are surrounded by a fence (Ryshembrock's fence being partly torn down due to vandalism and reckless driving), Nortni Squoldedin is located in a dense forest with only one road which is good enough for vehicles to drive on entering it. The peripheral block near Ryshembrock has only one main road, which circulates the trailers and prefab homes, and is too narrow after it passes the communal building.
Most agricultural buildings are located just outside of the peripheral block, although some are contained within it. Illegal trailers are generally scattered all over, but they may also be cluster, which is the case in the peripheral block near Ryshembrock. Ryshembrock is also noticeable for being the only peripheral block which does not only contain trailer homes and prefab houses, but also buildings for residential purpose which could be considered genuine houses. Novededin and Ryshembrock both have their own communal houses, which serve as local churches, pubs and meeting places. Farmlands are usually located very near or at a reasonable distance from the residential area, which is in all cases located within a forest area, encouraging forestry (silviculture) instead of agriculture among its inhabitants.
Religion[]
The majority of the population in the peripheral blocks is Christian, or, more specific, Roman-Catholic. Church services are held twice a week by a visiting Roman Catholic priest from Dien Village. It should be noted, however, that an usually large proportion of the population, by Oceana standards, does not profess their belief or is not affiliated with any religion.
Role during the Burenian invasion of Lovia[]
During the Burenian invasion of Lovia, the peripheral blocks formed an untakable fortress to the Burenians. While many Oceana people teamed up with the Burenians in the hope of realising an independent Oceana Republic, the inhabitants of the peripheral blocks feared that their liberties would be taken away by the Burenians, and thus protected their homes from being taken over. The abundance of illegal fire arms, which were confiscated by the liberation army after the conflict, proved to be a vital part in preventing the Burenians from entering Skelington and Bardeyow, slowing down their momentum towards Noble City and preventing them from entering Dien Village and reaching the Beaver River.