Improvement and rearrangement of Mequinez Street, Puerto de la Cruz.
Street renovation project that seeks to complete the promenade route with an attractive and accessible street that recovers the link with the historic heritage of its port and sailor housing.
Allowing pedestrian accessibility while enhancing the cultural image of the street with the goal of motivating the restoration and transformation of historic buildings; the sailor essence of the neighbourhood is recovered, inducing its economical and cultural renewal.
Local
Spain
Tenerife
Puerto de la Cruz (municipality of Tenerife)
Canary Islands
Mainly urban
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
No
No
Yes
2013-06-14
As an individual
First name: Cristina Last name: González Vázquez de Parga Gender: Female Nationality: Spain Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Glorieta Pedro de Mendoza 6, 4F Town: Santa Cruz de Tenerife Postal code: 38005 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34 922 21 32 81 E-mail:administracion@vdparquitectos.com Website:https://vdparquitectos.com/
The intervention includes the complete renovation of Mequinez Street, arriving at the small fishing port of the historic town. The main aim of the rearrangement is to restore the original character of the street, its sailor´s atmosphere, and strengthen its links with the little port, so that the street becomes an extension of it. The purpose is to give enough attractiveness to the street so to include it in the sightseeing promenade around the historic town.
In order to achieve this, environmental improvement issues have been a priority: traffic has been reduced to lower noise level and pollution, sidewalks have been widened and levelled in a single platform with the driveway to completely eliminate architectural barriers and palm trees of high size and different types have been planted to contribute with shadow, colour and oxygen.
It is also intended that the remodelling of the street could encourage the renovation of facades and the conversion of some houses into little shops and restaurants, and for that purpose the sidewalk is widened.
Paving for sidewalks is done with orthogonal pieces of basalt, variable in length, and basalt cobblestones are used for the road. Between road and sidewalk a line of norays with built-in lighting add a touch of sailor´s flavour. Where the street becomes wider royal palm trees of great high are planted.
Urban environment
Cultural heritage
Inclusion
Accessibility
Economic renovation
The project is a step forward in introducing the aspects of urban inclusion and sustainability. Completing the circular corridor with an accessible intervention guarantees creating a safe urban space for all people.
Limiting the use of the vehicle in favour of pedestrian use, while introducing vegetation in an area where it previously did not exist contributes to the improvement of the urban environment, while reducing the negative environmental impact of city use and tourism.
In addition, in conjunction with the public space, the project seeks to increase citizen influence in the area and its approach to historical and cultural heritage, promoting its use and protection.
The project seeks to link aesthetically the street with the cultural heritage of the port, for this, regarding the pavement to be used, has been designed all the way with basalt, as it is the natural material of the area, and the material used to form the fishing pier, and considering that the street Mequinez empties into the dock, it has been considered that the basalt helps a smooth transition between street and dock and that reinforces its sailor character.
The fundamental objective of the introduced vegetation is to be an ornamental element in the street Mequinez, giving color, freshness and shade in the stretch of street of greater width. For this purpose, a row of royal palm trees (roistonea regia) has been designed on the sea side of the widest stretch. On the side of the city, palm trees have been placed where the width has allowed, and on the finials of parking area, placing in this side kentias palms (howea fosteriana) and feathery coconuts, to give greater variety of texture and color to the street.
In the areas where it has been possible, and where functionality is required, a continuous flowerbed has been designed, to separate road traffic from the pedestrian watertight space, as is the case of the small square that is organized at the end of the street near the Rock. As a base to the flowerbed in this area it is proposed to use setcreasa purpúrea, of very low maintenance and tested resistance in this area to the saline environment. In the other planned parterre, halfway through the stretch to be remodelled, it has been planned to place mats (strelitzia reginae) for its color and attractiveness to the tourist.
The project stands out in terms of inclusion by having a design process focused on accessibility. The firm takes accessibility as an inalienable right, seeking to make the public space accessible by nature, and is part of the design process from the conception of the project itself. Accessibility is understood as being inextricably linked to man-made space and that our environment must be an environment for all, regardless of our capabilities, an environment that facilitates integration and acceptance of what is different in a normal way.
The main formal decision regarding accessibility in public spaces is to establish the entire width of the street in a single platform, in order to make the street space fully accessible and to enhance the pedestrian use of the street, to incorporate it into the pedestrian circuits of the rest of the hull. It is also intended to reduce the presence of the car and make the road traffic slower.
In this way, the urban space is projected primarily for its best use by the pedestrian, who is its basic user, and for the accessibility and inclusion of all people, have been essential issues of removal of obstacles and continuity of the pavement.
During the design of the project, meetings were held with all the bodies involved, in particular with the political leaders of the City Council and with the technical managers of the Tourism Area. It has sought to achieve objectives and, in particular, consensus and the approval of all its different stages and decisions.
This has meant a slower and more laborious work process, but has meant an enrichment of the final proposal, which is better adapted to the real needs of the area. Some of the project’s solutions, such as paving on the road, have been particularly requested by the City Mayor.
The project has been promoted by the Tourism Area of the Cabildo Insular de Tenerife, at the regional level, in conjunction with the Town Hall of Puerto de la Cruz, municipality of the same island, at the local level.
Throughout the project, political leaders of the City Council and technicians of the Tourism Area of the Island Council have had meetings with the team to achieve objectives and reach a consensus, enriching the final proposal.
As an architecture project, different technical disciplines have participated in the design and implementation process of this project.
Architectural design, industrial engineering, agronomists and construction technicians, have been part of the project development, all with the assistance of professionals in the area of tourism, which have cooperated in order to establish clear development objectives, ensuring the achievement of the desired results.
The renovation project was accompanied by the embellishment of the street facades, in order to improve the neighborhood’s environmental quality.
Through the intervention, the essence of the sea was recovered, materializing identifiable elements, such as norays, used as luminaires, and the houses are reconverted into small trade and restoration.
As a result, the neighborhood economically converted from one of the most degraded areas of the city to become the main gourmet restaurant and small business area.
The studio receives a Letter of Support from the Island Council of Tenerife for the 2015 Spanish Architecture Award.
Sustainable urbanism is usually a way to revitalize public spaces, by increasing the use of people who transit them, it promotes maintenance, commercial activities and a general improvement in environmental quality.
In this case, the project takes a step further by introducing a concept that links the intervention to the historical and cultural heritage, so that it serves as a basis for the promotion of the rehabilitation and protection of the historical buildings of the area.
We work so that, the buildings and the public space are easily accessible, from the moment it´s being designed to the very end of its construction, understanding that accessibility must be irrevocably linked to the space constructed by mankind, and that our environment must be, regardless of our disabilities, an environment for everyone, facilitating integration and acceptance.
To the extent that our environment allows the use and enjoyment of the public, people with disabilities will be able to make use of the amenities and spaces that they cannot access today. Their independency will be greater, increasing their vital opportunities. Once having overcome architectural barriers that impede mobility, sharing the city with disabled citizens will become more common and natural. Furthermore, learning how to coexist cooperatively with the subject of disability will be the best and most natural approach to de-stigmatize those disabled.
We understand that accessibility is an advantage for everyone, that everyone at some point in their lives is susceptible to some kind of disability and that, accessibility is the equivalence to comfort in the ambiance of mobility.
We also work to make accessibility unperceived, that all help is invisible or imperceptibly added, but forms and integrates naturally in the design of the building and/or the environment. In our projects we make accessibility criteria design criteria, so that ramps, rails, special pavements, color contrasts, soft surfaces, etc… form part of the building from its initial design.
The project serves as an example of interventions in historic centres, especially in accessibility issues.
Not being limited to urban intervention, but extrapolating local concepts to give it its own identity, differentiating itself from other urban spaces while linking to the environment in which it is located, can be a reference to follow in other contexts.
The project is related to the global sustainable development goal of making cities more inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. In its design, it seeks a comprehensive improvement of road safety by creating pedestrian platforms with private access and pedestrian protection, paying special attention to the needs of persons with disabilities and thus creating an inclusive and sustainable urban space.
Completing the sightseeing promenade while safeguarding the historical heritage constitutes a point of progress for the sustainable urban development of the Puerto de la Cruz, and at the same time provides an example to follow applicable to other locations, especially cities with a notable tourist flow.
