Laurent was a proposed planned community

Planned community

A planned community, or planned city, is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are less frequent in planned communities since...

 south of Salem, South Dakota

Salem, South Dakota

Salem is a city in and the county seat of McCook County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,347 at the 2010 census. The current mayor is Kennth Scott, a long-time resident. Salem at one time was called Melas...

 and which was designed for deaf, hard of hearing and other American Sign Language

American Sign Language

American Sign Language, or ASL, for a time also called Ameslan, is the dominant sign language of Deaf Americans, including deaf communities in the United States, in the English-speaking parts of Canada, and in some regions of Mexico...

 users. The town was to be named after Laurent Clerc

Laurent Clerc

Laurent Clerc , born Louis Laurent Marie Clerc, was called "The Apostle of the deaf in America" by generations of American deaf people...

; it was originally planned that the first residents would start moving into town in 2008.

The project was led by Marvin T. Miller, a deaf journalist and M. E. Barwacz (Miller's hearing mother-in-law). He claimed that the financing for the construction of the town, which was to encompass an area of 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²), was secured by a combination of Miller's own funds and a group of private investors. At the peak of planning, 158 families had put themselves on a waiting list to move into the town. In the early stages of the project, Miller and Barwacz were invited to establish the townsite at Spencer, South Dakota

Spencer, South Dakota

Spencer is a city in McCook County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 154 at the 2010 census. The city was almost completely destroyed by a violent F4 tornado on May 30, 1998 which killed 6.-Geography:...

 as there were many available lots, but this offer was rejected in favor of the site near the I-90 / US 81 interchange.

As planning progressed, this project was the subject of much "pro" and "con" discussions, the "pro" discussion coming from various organizations including the National Association of the Deaf

National Association of the Deaf

National Associations of the Deaf are national bodies that represent Deaf people and the Deaf community in their respective countries. They are usually members of the World Federation of the Deaf and advocate for sign language.-See also:...

. On the "con" side, there was the AGBAD

Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

The Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, also known as AG Bell, is a resource, support network and advocate for listening, learning, talking and living independently with hearing loss...

, who have argued that persons with "disabilities" should integrate into society rather than form an enclave. Also, a number of local residents had expressed concerns about the viability, economic aspects of the project, and its impact on the area.

By 2007, a number of factors combined that led Miller and Barwacz to declare bankruptcy, dissolve the Laurent Company (which had been coordinating efforts to build the town) and relocate to Indiana

Indiana

Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

: Miller and Barwacz had exhausted their own funds, the main "angel investor" that Miller had been depending on for $10 million in funding was unable to deliver, and most importantly to Miller, he had serious concerns over the quality of the education his children were receiving at the now-defunct South Dakota School for the Deaf

South Dakota School for the Deaf

The South Dakota School for the Deaf is a state-supported school located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota that provides services to meet the educational needs of children who are deaf, hard-of-hearing, or have cochlear implants...

 in Sioux Falls.

Once at Indiana, Miller made an attempt to interest the community there in his "signing

Sign language

A sign language is a language which, instead of acoustically conveyed sound patterns, uses visually transmitted sign patterns to convey meaning—simultaneously combining hand shapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to fluidly express a speaker's...

town" concept, but it apparently was not well-received; no further word has surfaced regarding this project. The website Miller had created to promote his idea online has also long since ceased to exist.