Hi Catherine. Thanks for the comment.

I've never had a problem finding conflict to build a story around, even when the setting is a pleasant one. After all, the story doesn't have to be about the setting.

In the novel I described here (which didn't turn out to be the one I used for my thesis), the new city is the subtext, and all the stories of the people living in or near it show off its advantages and problems, but the stories are about the people and the conflicts in their lives.

You are welcome to email me to discuss ideas or works in progress. I'm still finishing my MFA (one elective left) and stay pretty busy writing for Medium and looking for a teaching gig, so I may not answer right away. But I hope you will persist with your short stories.

As for intentional communities, especially artistic ones, they have the best chance of success IMO if managed by people other than artists.