ZARYADYE PARK BY TURENSCAPE

Rooted in the genius loci of Moscow and the site, the Zaryadye Park, a proposal by the Turenscape, is designed as an urban ecosystem that provides multiple eco-services to the city and people.

By overlaying the richness of site’s historical layers, the Park becomes a living puzzle that locks together the city’s memory, culture, ecology and people, which reveals the memory of the past and makes a prophecy for the future.

Zaryadye Park is a contemporary landscape with a new aesthetic based on environmental ethics: it offers high performance and requires low maintenance; it repairs the broken connections between man and nature. Its main feature – the Blue Circle is the perfect counterpoint to the Red Square.

Challenges of the site that the proposal needs to deal with are:

• Urban Ecology: storm water and snow melts from surrounding
• National Identity: an icon with representative, authentic, natural and cultural landscape
• Harsh Climate: cold winter and hot summer
• Recreation and Tourism: provides intimate spaces and also for activities in a crowd setting
• Heritage and history: existing buildings as open-air museum
• Site Connectivity: linking Red Square, waterfront, and context

In order to deal with the challenges we adopted a design strategy, which provides:

• A functional ecosystem that cleans and filtrates city’s storm water and snow melt and support native biodiversity
• A new icon of Moscow that represents an authentic natural and cultural landscape
• An oasis that regulates the harsh climate and urban environment and acts as a retreat to provide an intimate experience of nature
• A place that gathers people and stages different activities in all seasons and weather
• A public ‘balcony’ and open museum for the city which catches the best views of Moscow’s heritage skyline
• A uniting space that connects the surrounding urban fabric and the waterfront

Zaryadye Park – the Blue Circle of Moscow– is an integration of 4 layers. Firstly, it is a system of Designed Natures. It is composed of 5 major landscape elements that represent Russian vernacular landscapes – them being, the monastery gardens, meadow, constructed wetland, reflection pond and birch forest.

Secondly, the scheme brings to the fore the footprints remnants on the site. The design visualizes the imprints of the historical buildings and streetscape that lies underneath, and transforms these imprints into a functional wetland and ground pattern.

Thirdly, there are the Winter gardens. Service facilities including café, restaurant, and temporary exhibitions are contained in glass houses. Lastly, there is the Boardwalk and Skywalk system that are detached from the ground and that integrate seating with platforms and environmental interpretation system for people to experience the designed natures.

ECORIUM BY SAMOO ARCHITECTS & ENGINEERS

"Located in Seocheon, Republic of Korea, the Ecoplex ecological park is a government led initiative to preserve the natural environment of the region and to create a national hub to gather various ecological valuables for advanced research and exhibition in Korea.

The site was originally allocated to be developed as an industrial zone but due to its environmental values, the Korean government changed the plan and commissioned a design competition for the Ecoplex and its various facilities which was won by SAMOO Architects & Engineers. Within the Ecoplex lies the Ecorium, a landmark facility and a purpose-built exhibition facility.

Designed by SAMOO Architects and Engineers in collaboration with Grimshaw Architects, the Ecorium is composed of various greenhouses and controlled environments in order to reproduce the global ecosystem of five different climatic zones ranging from the tropical to the polar regions. Designed with the concept of ‘Nature’s Odyssey’, the individual climate zones are grouped by a linear podium which also functions as the main exhibition circulation path providing various experiences to visitors.

Arriving inside the Ecorium, visitors will be greeted by a grand lobby that provides a glimpse of the various climate zones and provide convenient access routes to various facilities including permanent exhibitions, theaters, cafeterias and gift shops. The tropical zone will be the first climate zone being presented to visitors. Designed as the largest greenhouse, the zone provides sufficient room for various plants and trees to grow in the future. The greenhouse provides a realistic environment where visitors could actually see, hear, feel, and touch as if inside a tropical rain forest.

The arrangement of trees, plants and aquarium have been carefully set with waterfall features to provide visitors with a comprehensive experience. And to provide a more realistic sense of the environment, an observatory deck has been installed commanding a panoramic view of the whole tropical zone. Next to the tropical zone lies the second greenhouse reproducing the sub-tropical zone with its harsh environment of the deserts and perhaps a glimpse of the future if global warming continues.

The third greenhouse is the Mediterranean zone filled with abundance of greenies and providing a contrasting experience. The fourth greenhouse would be the Temperate zone which is actually the climate zone of Korea. Due to this advantage, the zone provides a variety of experiences with some programs that is linked to the outdoor zones with miniature mountains and valleys with water flows. The last climate zone would be the Polar zone with its sub-zero temperature environment.

This zone will provide exhibitions of the polar environment with displays of actual living penguins. It will also provide a realistic environment that promotes the education on global warming and its destructive effects on polar regions. For structural rigidity of the large greenhouses, each of the greenhouses is supported by a mega-structure main arch which provides stability to the whole structure. With the main arch providing support, it is equipped with horizontal band-truss which provides lateral stabilities and integrity to the whole structure.

Slopped vertical trusses connected to the main arch support the curtain wall as well as resistance to wind loads. Planned as an eco-friendly building, the Ecorium is strategically designed to become a leading facility in regards to sustainability. The idea of creating a sustainable facility was at the heart of the project and this was realized through multiple simulations that were engineered to reduce energy consumptions and carbon footprints.

For example, the alignment and the orientation of the various greenhouses were simulated to create an ideal environment depending on the climate zone the greenhouse would represent. Also, air-flow simulations were carried out so that natural ventilation effects could be maintained throughout the 4-seasons for necessary facilities. The sloped curtain-wall of each climate zones would gather rain-water for cooling & watering plants.

With these various efforts, the whole facility was able reduce total energy consumption by approximately 10%. With a grand vision of becoming the hub for education and research on ecology, the Ecorium within the Ecoplex will play an important role in providing an opportunity for visitors to have a hands-on experience of the various ecological environments around the world and teach us the importance of our natural environments." Description from the architects.

Location: Seocheon-gun, Korea

Architects: SAMOO Architects and Engineers

Collaboration: Grimshaw Architects, Top Architects & Associates, 2HM Architects & Associates

Total Floor Area: 33,090 m2

Floors: 2 Stories and 1 Basement

Year: 2012

Photo: Young Chae Park

HUNTERS POINT SOUTH WATERFRONT PARK BY THOMAS BALSLEY ASSOCIATES

The park, which occupies a site that was previously marsh wetland and a drained landfill, is part of a larger, ambitious master plan to transform the area into a modern ecological community that includes the largest affordable housing effort in New York City since the 1970s.

Hunters Point South Waterfront Park marking the first chapter of rejuvenation for the riverside neighbourhood in Queens, New York. The waterfront park is a dynamic, multi-faceted destination that is set to bring a hoard of new visitors to the area.

Hunters Point comprises a sprawling oval-shaped green to accommodate all types of recreational uses: an urban beach that's ready for picnickers and volleyball; a rail garden that features native fauna planted over disused freight rails; and a soaring, eye-catching pavilion that connects urban-dwelling areas to the East River waterfront and an elevated wooden pier.

Apart from its exciting design and location, what really sets Hunters Point South Waterfront Park apart is the undercurrent of sustainability that runs through its every aspect.

Aside from turning a 20-acre abandoned, post-industrial waterfront into prime real estate, the park boasts a new urban plan that includes bioswales that filter stormwater from Center Boulevard, bikeways, and upland smart streets with banquette seating to allow comfortable enjoyment of the skyline views.

Concrete bulk-heads have been replaced with new wetlands and green pathways that lead to a 30-foot high overlook that's suspended over the water's edge. The pavilion itself, which is made from folded plates to collect storm water, is also installed with 64 photovoltaic panels that generates 37,000 kWh per year.

It will start off powering 50% of the park, with the vision of adding more panels to eventually power the park entirely. Even the dog run consists of a water rill and stacked timber seating. With the development of 5,000 permanently affordable residential units and a school both to come, the park is a perfect starting point for uniting the area's industrial past and its multi-cultural future.

“Hunters Point South is envisioned as an international model of urban ecology and a world laboratory for innovative sustainable thinking. The project is a collaboration between Thomas Balsley Associates and Weiss/Manfredi for the open space and park design with ARUP as the prime consultant and infrastructure designer. The site is waterfront and city, gateway and sanctuary, blank slate and pentimento.

These readings suggest an approach to the landscape that enhances what is unique about the site, while framing a new multi-layered identity as a recreational and cultural destination.

New open spaces with connections to the surrounding communities, provide access to the water’s edge and spectacular views of the Manhattan skyline. The design incorporates active and passive recreation and a broad array of sustainable initiatives, transforming Hunters Point South into a new cultural and ecological paradigm.” Thomas Balsley Associates and Weiss/Manfredi

Location: Queens, New York

Architects: Thomas Balsley Associates and Weiss/Manfredi

Year: 2013

Client: New York City Economic Development Corporation

Photography: Albert Vecerka/Esto