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Hood Delivery
Disciplines
Urban Planning
Urban Design
Landscape Architecture
Socially Engaged Design
Host & Collaborators
UAUIM Bucharest, RO
Angelica Stan
Alexandra Anton
Status
Independent & Collaborative Research Project
Proposal for Peripheral Area of Bucharest - Development Plan
Bucharest, Romania
A simple math problem wants to solve the dirty problems of Bucharest,
the capital of Romania:
Problem No.1: a large garbage dump + Problem No.2: an arid, dry landscape with rail lines curving between depots and abandoned industry =
The Result: A lushy train station in the middle of an urban forest, powered by a green, keen and garbage hungry machine
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Bellow you can see the Blue-Green Structure within the administrative borders of the city. Much of this structure is a mixed result of history with heavy marks of the communist era, such is Morii Lake, surrounded by an uneasy landscape and known to have been merciless built over an old cemetery, Dâmbovita Canal crossing the city from West to East (a presence that is rarely of public benefit since it is bordered by heavy traffic) or Vacaresti Delta which is an abandoned megaproject taken over by vegetation and fauna, soothing the spirits to have witnessed how nature can sometimes take over too eager political will. The green patches surrounding the administrative borders are wild forests and hopes for one day to become a safe and accessible destination.
Core Transport Structure
of Bucharest
Blue-Green Structure
of Bucharest
Besides the main axes N-S & W-E of constant heavy traffic, felt like hard barriers to cross, in the N-W side of the city there is an opaque dusty landscape of rail lines, curving between depots and abandoned industry. Until reaching the main Train Station of Bucharest, any attempt to cross it is an impossible mission.
Concrete Territorial Imprint of Bucharest
and its surroundings
Bucharest Round Belt / Road
Intervention Area
From oldest to newest built
Thought
Process
frame-by-frame
The main problem was the closed landscape of old rail lines, so we decided to put more rail lines
For a reason: the garbage dump. The entire area around Morii Lake is far from being a destination everyone wants to visit. The lake itself is wrapped in haunted stories related to the way former dictator Ceausescu merciless teared out an entire cemetery to build the lake, the nature is a combination of bushy wetland and spontaneous vegetation, while the wind doesn't bring the freshest breeze or covers the noise from the trucks delivering garbage all day from the busy city.
More garbage, please! With technology already available and just a few dots to connect and solve our math problem, Rudeni Garbage Dump magically transforms into an energy providing powerhouse and, while there would be no shortage of such fuel, the need comes down to an equally hungry energy consumer in the vicinity since energy cannot be stored. With plenty of CFR rail lines buzzing of electricity, the result almost grew out of the field: CFR Station Hood, Bucharest's new Train Station in the middle of the city's new, lushy forest.
CFR Station Hood
CFR - Romanian Railways Company
From nobody's backyard to everyone's backyard
Before all new rails rushing to move in The Hood, there are the old rail lines that were a hard separation between Rudeni village and Bucharest city. While dwellers of Rudeni mostly manage small scale agricultural activities and host the garbage dump of the city they were separated from, dwellers of Bucharest in the vicinity of this future green station are mostly poor neighbourhoods in clear need for new urban planning & a confidence boost.
Next challenge: translate the core proposal into a territorial imprint / masterplan that clearly and deeply erases traces of hard barriers and separation.
Sometimes noise can become music if you make peace with it
Hood Delivery pulled its sleeves and dived into a highly problematic landscape to make peace with it. The Masterplan bellow managed to create room by creating rhythm - a rhythm that contains activities related to the train station itself and the connections it propels (forest tram, gondola line, link to highway), and a rhythm that is contained by the constant energy provided by CFRe.
To clearly and deeply erase traces of hard barriers and separation, and for Rudeni to become part of the city, connectivity is just one part of the problem. The other part is making it attractive enough to become a destination and therefore we decided to highlight the agricultural tendency of the place by transforming this side of The Hood into an integrated agro-forest. The now neighbours from Bucharest are welcomed with open arms to come for some well grown, organic food, buzzing honey and other such goods.
As mentioned, haunted stories were a type of invisible barrier for people to come in this area, but peace is what we aim for. In the north part of the plan, there are ruins of a once well known monastery, so we decided to place here a Horse Therapy Centre, where people can learn or freely ride in The Hood, stop in the Agroforest, by the Winery or even sneak peak in the International Cooking Club. Previous separated by a hard barrier, Rudeni and Bucharest now meet in the middle of an international arena, CFR Station Hood, making a smooth transition between rural and urban.
If you happen to be a newly landed tourist, not caught in much haunting, you may still get stuck in this area since there are too many things to do. From the Agroforestry to the Botanical Garden, besides the forest one has plenty of options also on the water (water sports facilities) and in the air (hot-air balloon flying). If you happen to be on a business trip and short on time, Morii Business Centre has its front desk, open space and co-working rock & rolling and lots of urban sport activities in the vicinity to clear the mind and load the spirit.
Finally, if you happen to be a resident of Bucharest, you may feel suspiciously attached to your garbage knowing that you are part of an organised complot to run an ecologically powered train station in the middle of a lushy urban forest. Power to the people!
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