m a k a r s k a  w a t e r f r o n t

 

competition / second place

with Dora Ivančan & Matija Vinković

2022

 

The Makarska waterfront is 750 meters long and 25 to 40 meters wide. The profile of the waterfront consists of a line along the coast, a row of palm trees, a sloping parking lot, a one-way road, a row of mulberry trees and plane trees, and an area next to the buildings that is mostly occupied by the terraces of catering facilities. The Makarska waterfront is characterized by a large amount of vegetation and playful facades of buildings that dynamize the otherwise monotonous waterfront and create smaller and larger gathering areas. The waterfront is divided into 3 zones. Zone I is a part of the waterfront located west of the ferry pier. In zone I there are mainly cultural and commercial facilities. In zone II there are a number of buildings of significant architectural and historical value. Zone III is characterized by the largest number of catering facilities.

 

Considering the importance of the city of Makarska as a tourist center, there is a lot of pressure for by increasing the tourist offer and thus leading to an uncontrolled increase in content, which results in the disharmony and unevenness of urban equipment elements, the inappropriate appearance of kiosks and closed stalls, and the mismatched paving that has been adapted on several occasions. In addition, a large part of the waterfront is occupied by the road and roadside parking, which can be relocated.

 

As one of the greatest values ​​of the waterfront, we recognized a large amount of tall vegetation – mulberry, kostel, palm and sycamore trees that create a pleasant ambience and provide shade in the summer. The project envisages the affirmation of existing greenery through the creation of a central green belt, which also creates a link between two park forests – Sveti Petar and Osejava. The green belt, which contains a row of palm trees on the south side and other high greenery on the north side, enables the organization of the space, giving it various characters and functions. Greenery divides the entire space into 3 steps, which are graduated from a space of retention to a space of fast communication, from public to intimate, from fully to ambient lighting. City promenade – the area north of the green belt is defined by the formation of niches of different surfaces. In the niche, the terraces of the catering establishments are placed, which keeps the communication with the front of the buildings. With this procedure, the area of ​​the sheds is limited to a defined zone of niches, which prevents uncontrolled expansion, especially in the summer, and at the same time natural shade is enabled by drawing the surfaces into the high greenery. Within the green belt there is a public promenade – a green promenade, which changes its width and allows for a pleasant walk and staying in niches with benches. In places where the promenade extends, various attractions specific to the summer can take place (portrait painting, selling souvenirs, performances by street musicians, etc.) and accommodate existing positive scenarios such as gatherings of pensioners, feeding pigeons, etc. protected as a cultural asset, it spills from the building to the sea, creating squares suitable for larger gatherings and various events. The area south of the green belt – the blue promenade is defined by a strict line along the sea. It enables fast communication and a more intimate character of staying on the benches that are placed along the green stretch with a view of the sea.