Courageous history-sensitive urban design in downtown Szeged
A significant centric area of the city was rebuilt with a common concept: the aim of the project was to create a sustainable, inclusive space for the community, which tells important stories of the city. The project area includes the oldest street of the city and its surroundings: a park by the river containing two playgrounds, an open square, plenty of green space, the old Castle, and the Museum; and the old Cinema.
Local
Hungary
Municipality of Szeged
Mainly urban
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
Yes
ERDF : European Regional Development Fund
Call by the Government of Hungary to the cities with county rights to implement their urban regeneration activities in an environmentally sound manner.
In the Partnership Agreement, the Government has set the objective of urban environmental improvement measures and economic development interventions. The Government intends to achieve this objective through cooperation between local authorities, local non-profit organisations and churches1 , under the conditions set out in this Call for Proposals.
In the framework of this cooperation, the Government undertakes to:
- provide non-repayable grants to projects that meet the conditions of the Call for Proposals, up to the amount of the available funds;
- Grant advances will be provided to eligible projects that meet the conditions for the grant advance as set out in the Call.
Organisations submitting a grant application undertake2, in the framework of cooperation, to:
- contribute, through the implementation of their project, to the improvement of the overall environmental status of cities and to the economic development objectives of the TOP (Operational Programme for Spatial and Urban Development);
- finance the project from their own resources in addition to the grant received.
No
Yes
2022-10-18
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): Municipality of Szeged Type of organisation: Public authority (European/national/regional/local) First name of representative: László Last name of representative: Botka Gender: Male Nationality: Hungary Function: mayor Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Széchenyi square 10. Town: Szeged Postal code: 6720 Country: Hungary Direct Tel:+36 62 564 474 E-mail:polgarmester@szeged.eu Website:http://www.szegedvaros.hu
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Yes
New European Bauhaus or European Commission websites
A significant centric area of the city was rebuilt with a common concept: the aim of the project was to create a sustainable, inclusive space for the community, which tells important stories of the city. The unique history of the town enabled a unique urbanistic approach: the majority of the city was destroyed by the Great Flood in 1879, the whole town was elevated and rebuilt, leaving thousands of years of history under the new buildings. The story of the flood is known by every single citizen, and expanding this common knowledge, exposing and highlighting pieces of this ancient city can strengthen the sense of belonging, and the connection between citizens.
The project area includes the oldest street of the city and its surroundings: a park by the river containing two playgrounds, an open square, plenty of green space, the old Castle, and the Museum, as well as the old Cinema. As the territory has many functions, and plays an important role in the life of the citizens, there was a long planning process to cover every aspect which included every relevant actor: citizens, experts from many disciplines, NGOs, municipal companies, civil servants were participating.
The project area contains one of the most important traffic routes of the city, which was completely rebuilt as a cyclist and pedestrian friendly area, resulting in the biggest change in the traffic system of the city in the last decades. Such major changes needed a strong concept for communication: in order to provide all the information to the residents in an organized and understandable way, many creative tools were developed and tested in the project.
The historic approach of the architects, the cooperation of many experts and stakeholders, and the focus on sustainability came together in the thorough planning process and created a beautiful open space in the dense urban environment.
history-sensitive urbanism
timeless design
inclusive public spaces
green city
sustainable transportation
Throughout the whole project it was a key goal to make the renewed spaces and buildings sustainable in terms of energy efficiency, carbon emission, water management, space management, biodiversity, mitigating the heat island effect of the city, and changing the infrastructure to favour the sustainable modes of transportation. The various parts of the project required many elements, to make the result truly sustainable.Part of the renewed area is an important transportation route of the city. It was completely redesigned as a cyclist and pedestrian friendly area resulting in the biggest change in the city’s transportation system in the last decades. Removing the parking lane provided plenty of space for sustainable alternatives: wider pavements, cafe terraces, trees, and wide cycling lanes which is especially important as this is one of the busiest cycling paths of the country. The new junctions all favour cyclists and public transportation is also preferred. The changes prevent cars from using the area for transit which has several positive effects on air quality, noise pollution, and the general well being of the citizens.The effects of climate change are becoming a lot harder to tolerate in the city especially in the summer. In order to mitigate the heat island effect, bind carbon and improve air quality 37 new trees were planted alongside 4200 shrubs and 4700 flowers which contain several perennial plants, sustainable flower beds with a high biodiversity. The species were carefully chosen considering the changing climate of the area. The pavements became permeable in order to improve soil quality and preserve water locally. The fountain in front of the Museum uses water-efficient technology, and plays a huge role in reducing the heat in the summer. The renewal of the buildings of the project were planned to increase energy efficiency: LED lights, new boilers, a heat recovery ventilation system, and solar panels were installed wherever heritage protection allowed.
The design of the renewed spaces reflects the cultural heritage of the city on many levels. The goal was to create an atmosphere which includes the reverence of the classic shapes, and elevates it to a new level by adding modern, green, inclusive, human centric elements. The result should encourage the citizens to spend quality time in this pleasant environment and connect to the various cultural elements, nature and last but not least to each other.
The open, bright spaces contain various tools to tell stories about the old city and castle, and the water-connected, fishing lifestyle that was erased by the big flood. These story-telling elements can be as subtle as the boat-shaped flower beds, the boat-shaped counter in the cafe or the fish-shaped toys on the playground, or as direct as the images of the old castle in glass displays. The unique wooden benches and the wrought-iron lamp posts were recreated from 100-year-old photos, and some elements connect us to even more ancient history: the iconic clinker brick pavements represent the natural resources of the area, where traditionally clay was used instead of stone which was a rare material in this area. The earth tone red colour of the bricks create a warm contrast to the bright colours.
Several local artists were invited to cooperate with the architects to create the unique rusty-surfaced benches to commemorate the old towers of the castle or the sculptures reshaping pillars of an ancient temple that was found during the reconstruction. The path following the layout of the old walls is highlighted in the area with a distinguished colour on the pavements, so that citizens can feel the actual size of the old castle.
The museum and the old cinema are constituents of the city's architectural heritage, as well as being busy cultural institutions. The goal was to restore them in their original beauty, the pavings, the panelling, even the original colours were explored and restored.
A well-designed public space has room for everyone: the design process paid special attention to the needs of every age group, citizens with disabilities, and affordability was also a key goal.An inclusive space should have plenty of opportunities for the citizens without having to spend any money. Not only did the project create plenty of free seats, meeting points, but the visitors of the area can also access pieces of history: they can explore the map of the old city, images of the old castle, the archeology works on displays, or participate in a detective game to explore all of these elements, while solving a mystery from the 1800’s. As the space opened up by replacing the old fountain and creating a small auditorium around it, which is now spacious enough for a bigger crowd, people can watch the display of the water and lights to the music, or attend the several free events and concerts. In the project the museum created a free community space inside the building which is now used by art students, local artists, photographers, painters, and any passers-by to meet, or exhibit their work. The renewal of the cultural institutions and the infrastructure in the public spaces were planned in cooperation with representatives of people with disabilities, there are several added elements in the design like special items on the playgrounds or audioguides for the visually impaired.The goal was to use public space wisely. Before the project, cars occupied most of the space on the street although the majority travels sustainably. In the redesign pedestrians and cyclists received their fair share of public space, and instead of the parking spaces, the cafes and restaurants could set up terraces, benefiting more people.The visitors of the area can also access pieces of history, they can explore the map of the old city, images of the old castle, and the archeology works on displays, and there are many more ways to engage in the history of the town in a creative way outdoors.
To research all the needs of the citizens, a questionnaire was used to find out about their current habits, viewpoints, and intentions regarding the area. They could be filled online, and there were also interviewers in the area surveying the passers-by.
A public forum was organized with all the experts present, every relevant organization, and all the citizens were also invited. There was a possibility to fill in the survey sheet on the public forum as well.
The results of the survey were taken into account: citizens expressed their desire for a public toilet, a change of pavement in the park, to improve and expand the green space and many more elements, which were all fulfilled in the project.
The nearby schools were also involved in the planning process, the architects planned a meeting place for teenagers, and the nearby playground was redesigned to make it suitable for highschoolers. They also left a grassy area for them to use in P.E. class, as the school does not have a schoolyard.
One of the highlights of the project was the new fountain in front of the museum. Citizens could vote for their favorite version, and the winning design was implemented in the final plans.
The largest civil group of the city is the "memory seekers", who collect local stories, photographs from the past. As the project has a strong historic aspect, they were also involved in the communication process. Their collected common memories made it possible to highlight the community behind the historic elements.
Like most rehabilitation projects, this one is also linked to many actors at local, national and EU level. Due to the complexity of the site, in addition to the usual sectoral actors, water authorities (the area is directly linked to the flood protection embankment), heritage protection as well as (considering the complex historical heritage) specialists in archeology and history have played an important role in the development of the plans.
It is important to mention the critical mass movement, which was started by citizens in 2006 and became a professional cycling advocacy organization in cooperation with the Hungarian Cyclists' Club. They organized protests twice a year for a better cycling infrastructure and against the growing dominance of cars. As a result of their efforts, the municipality is committed to improve the conditions of cycling, and they started to implement the changes as part of the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan of Szeged. One of the busiest cycling routes of the country crosses the area of the project, and from the very beginning one of the main demands made by the critical mass organizers was to remodel this territory. The needs of the cyclists became top priority while planning the project, and the critical mass organizers were included in the whole process. They officially approved all the plans. As a result of the ongoing changes, the organization announced the end of the protests as they claimed their goals have been achieved:
"Today, one in five people in Szeged travels by bicycle, bike racks have become part of the cityscape, and Szeged has the busiest cycle route in the country. Szeged has become a cycling city, every resident in Szeged has a relative, friend or colleague who rides a bicycle, and the critical mass is present in the city 365 days a year."
The project area includes many different types of public places and institutions, it was absolutely necessary to cooperate with experts from very different fields and include many disciplines in the planning process. This made the planning unusually long, but resulted in a cohesive and deliberate project. The first important step was for the archaeologist to excavate the surroundings of the castle, which created the foundation for the architectural concept. Working together with the historians and archeologists, they planned the whole area to reflect pieces of history, common memories, and to showcase the existing historical heritage of the territory. During the implementation artists, and restorers were involved. The renewal of the area has a great strategic significance. To cover every possible aspect, the municipality created action groups to involve experts and organizations. One of them was responsible for strategic planning and they involved the Chief Architect, the Chief Officer for Civil Affairs, the University of Szeged, the Centre for Social Sciences, the Chamber of Architects, the Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted and many more. Another one was responsible for digital and green transformation, and they worked together with green NGOs of the city, the Hungarian Cyclists' Club, the Faculty of Science and Informatics and more. Planning the new traffic regime of the territory also underwent a great amount of planning, as the traffic engineers tested and modelled all the possible variations. In this process all the experts of the public road management, NGOs, the local police, and the transport companies were involved to decide on the best possible solution.The green aspect was also taken seriously, a dendrologist examined all the trees, landscape architects carefully selected all the new species with biodiversity in mind, sustainability as well as the aesthetics of the green spaces were considered and experts of water management were also involved
As a result of the rehabilitation the core of the city and one of the most important junctions of the city has been completely renewed, with the area's transport, tourism, sustainability, heritage, cultural, accessibility and community aspects all being adequately addressed. The changes were unanimously welcomed by all stakeholders and citizens.
The aesthetic and urbanistic concept of the rehabilitation was awarded the 2021 Urban Development Association Award, and in 2022 the János Hild Award of The Hungarian Society for Urban Planning, Hungary's most prestigious architectural-urbanistic award.
The redeveloped areas have provided a wide range of quality free-time activities and have quickly become the most popular leisure and cultural venues for residents. The newly opened and existing restaurants in the area are also more and more popular, the rehabilitation of the area has certainly contributed to Szeged's steady increase in number of tourists over the years and to the city's 2021 award as "Tourist City of the Year" by the country's leading travel and lifestyle magazine.
The appearance and the programmes of the area’s cultural institutions have also improved significantly, and the new open area of Móra Park is now filled with cultural events, concerts, open-air cinema events. The international film festival of the cinema has also become an important event for european film professionals.
Changes in transport have reduced heavy traffic in the area and, thanks to the development of the cycling path network, the share of cycling in Szeged is now over 20% (it used to be 5% in 2005), making it the most bicycle-friendly city in Hungary.
Although the project has produced significant results in all areas concerned, many of these effects are difficult to quantify, because the project involved public spaces and due to COVID, which has had a significant impact on both traffic and attendance numbers at institutions.
The project can be considered as a pioneer in two main aspects.
The municipality is in a fortunate position as the city has many innovative experts, due to the presence of the University. It can be a great challenge to coordinate this expertise and use it in harmony with the will of the citizens.The municipality took the time to plan everything carefully, reaching out to every possible stakeholder. To coordinate the disciplines involved they used innovative methods, establishing action groups, holding workshops with experts, NGOs and civil servants participating.
The other exceptional part of the project was the communication of the changes in the traffic system. As the project involved many details from many disciplines, the goal was to make every piece of information available for the public, paired with an eye-catching design to grab attention. The major changes in the transportation systems needed to be introduced in advance, in a way that people can implement the changes in their routine. The communication team created a 3D vision of the project area, and on the website people could explore the new territory in a virtual tour, and by clicking on certain details they can access information about the scientific background of the decision or practical uses of the new elements. There were explanations and animations from every perspective: for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians. Offline tools were also to reach everyone in the area: the 3D images of the soon to be rebuilt area were displayed on the territory, and colorful paintings on the pavement indicated the start of the construction. The website made it a lot easier for the municipal companies to handle inquiries, as every answer could be found online.
There are many innovative ideas in the architectural design like the concrete benches with the blueprints of the towers of the old castle, the archaeological sandbox or the statues with hidden pictures of the excavations.
The approach to come up with the key concept of the project follows the thought process of the architects: how can we strengthen the sense of belonging in a thousands of different citizens? They have found the answer in the history of the town, the story of the Great Flood known by every single citizen, and expanding this common knowledge by stories of the old city can strengthen the connection between people. The citizens of the town are proud of their heritage, and they are also open to creating an inclusive, sustainable future.
Regarding the planning method, the success of this project lies in the priority of thorough planning, the involvement of every possible knowledge field, and taking the time to gather all input and to find the best way of cooperation.
As a result of this broad partnership all the details of the concept have been worked out and brought together to create a consistent project. This could not have been possible without the cooperation of all these partners and knowledge fields. The long implementation process of the plans on this area which affects many people and has a complex functionality could proceed without considerable public or professional resistance or criticism, and continues to deliver positive results ever since.
The approach of the communication of the project is also notable: it aimed to provide every citizens with the level of involvement they wished, if someone wants to have a quick overview of all the changes in progress, they can access all the key information, however if they want to acquire in-depth knowledge about the science behind the decisions, and every aspect of the outcome, they are presented with every information in a clear, understandable, organized way. All the calculations, and documents were also available to make the project perfectly transparent. This approach also reduces the distance between the experts of the disciplines involved and the citizens who will benefit from that expertise after all.
Many innovative ideas in architectural design are suitable for implementing, such as the archaeological sandbox, the statues in which you can peek inside and see some pictures, or the benches with the blueprint designs are great ideas for areas which have stories to tell about their history. Although some ideas can be specific to the area, the general approach to reflect history in a modern space by transforming items into storytelling elements could be replicated anywhere.The communication approach and the tools that were developed and tested can be implemented in any projects which need management of minor or major changes. The approach of providing everyone with the information they need, and making it interesting enough so that they want to learn more about the project seemed to work very well.The virtual tour with the explanations placed in 3D space was very popular, and the interactive strong visuals helped to keep the users engaged and reach many people organically. The explanations about the new traffic order for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians all used the created 3D space, in the form of animation video or GIFs used in the articles. Local history was also represented with the help of a historian and art historian, and the citizens were also involved by collecting their photographs and memories about the territory. To keep everyone updated about the construction, there was a platform on the website to allow a constant information flow between citizens and the contractor, as important traffic routes had to be closed and the traffic situation was constantly changing during the 12 months of the construction.
https://tinyurl.com/5cryr6xm
The offline elements of the communication could also be implemented in other projects: there were displays with the visual plan for the area, shown from the exact same perspective. Shortly before the construction, a local artist designed and painted pictures on the pavement to increase awareness about the upcoming changes
As the structure of society is changing globally, causing the traditional forms of communities to disappear, and people are becoming isolated especially in the alienated cities. This affects the wellbeing of the citizens all over the world. The need for connections is increasing and a municipality can offer opportunities to connect in many forms: creating inclusive, open spaces, highlighting parts of the heritage of the city that establishes a stronger connection between citizens, organizing public events, providing free-time activities outdoors and in the cultural institutions.
Another challenge that affects most cities is the growing demand for cars and infrastructure for cars which easily results in a vicious circle. Space is limited, and it has to be distributed equally to benefit everyone, and building infrastructure for alternatives, encouraging cycling, public transportation or walking should provide a long-term solution for the problem. It is also important to raise awareness about the problem, and educate citizens about sustainability in the traffic system of the city. In this project one of the most important junctions of the city was completely rebuilt to favour cyclists, pedestrians, and public transportation vehicles, which was quite progressive for most Hungarians as they are not familiar with the fundamental problems with using cars in the city. That is why in the project the communication of the changes were also planned carefully. It aimed to explain the principles of sustainable transportation and also create a general positive attitude towards these changes, to gain support to continue with this attitude.
The fight against climate change has to be addressed globally, but to prepare for the consequences is mainly a local task: quality of life improves a lot in the hot summers if there are green spaces, trees, water sources, bright colours to mitigate the heat island effect, to create a better microclimate.
