Meditirana - Designing Circular Markets
Market / Maintenance / Migration
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Date
2024-08
Publication Type
Educational Material
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yes
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Abstract
terranean.
What sets Tirana apart from cities like Athens, Barcelona,
Casablanca, Istanbul, or Tel Aviv?
Tirana is undergoing a radical transformation, emerging as one of
the top three fastest-growing European cities, driven in part by a
controversial agreement to accommodate up to 100,000 migrants
for asylum processing. Today, Tirana is a dynamic urbanization laboratory,
experiencing developer-driven growth in the center and
a surge in unplanned settlements on the periphery. As an integral
component, students will develop projects exploring how public
market architecture and circular urban design qualities can stop the
drift, leading to greater equality and infrastructure access.
As Tirana experiences significant growth and transformation, the
maintenance of its natural resources—such as soil, water, and air—
becomes increasingly crucial. Abundance does not equate to unlimited
use; over-exploitation of these resources could undermine
the city’s long-term resilience and prosperity. Therefore, sustainable
management practices must be prioritized to ensure these resources
continue to support both current and future generations.
With this in mind, students will develop a prototype project to capture
the universal experience and atmosphere of a public market
and common spaces with open transaction programs that reconnect
the city with the waterfront. This project seeks to reflect the
Southern lifestyle, overcome the communist heritage, and capitalize
on opportunities. Developing these markets leverages undeveloped
coastlines and water edges, pristine bio-agricultural soils, natural
unobstructed river flows, and a blend of natural and artificial lakes
and even retention basins.
Tirana stands as an unprecedented resource and a laboratory for
site-specific architecture and circular urban models. The city offers
an unparalleled testing ground for developing sub-centers and
market areas, interconnected by infrastructure, to provide structure
and perspective to urban development. This initiative, marking
a significant departure from the city’s communist past, is closely
linked to the waterfront of Tirana’s sea, rivers, and lakes, offering a
solid image and program for the future.
We have identified the design and construction of sub-centers, both
through new developments and the enhancement of existing areas,
as a strategic program to offer integrated spaces that combine
markets and public services. These sub-centers, interconnected
by comprehensive infrastructure—including transportation, digital
networks, and access to essential services such as education and
healthcare—are envisioned to provide a new organizational structure
and perspective for the people of Tirana. This approach not
only aims to foster a renewed sense of identity and community, but
also prepares the city to accommodate future migrants and tourists
by creating common spaces that enhance the city’s sustainable
circular development.
The design studio focuses on the transformative redevelopment of
the city on three scales:
A_ General Urban Plan (GUP) Scale : 1:10.000
B_Regulatory Plan (RP) Scale: 1:1000
C_Architectural Prototype Scale: 1:500, 1:200
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Publication status
published
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Book title
Journal / series
Volume
Fall’24
Pages / Article No.
Publisher
ETH Zurich, Chair of Architecture and Urban Design
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Edition / version
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Date created
Subject
Urban design; Architecture; Urban planning; Prototyping; Sustainable cities
Organisational unit
03882 - Klumpner, Hubert / Klumpner, Hubert