The hybrid architecture of an artificial dune- at some points a low hill with a mediterranean essence that houses parking lots in its inner core, and at other points an artificial structure, walkable on the cover, open toward the sea and holding spaces for public activities and buildings with special purposes- creates new connections between old buildings and new structures along the harbour's waterfront of Valencia, after the America's cup event. It offers new ways of using the quays, creates an acoustic barrier against the container port close by, and mitigates the climate, diverting the summer and winter prevailing winds. Along the coastline the dune is a complex element: from the beach toward the marinas it is an urban promenade with a natural background, it houses shipyards, commercial services and parking lots under the metal vaults of its artificial parts. The promenade also incorporates the system of pedestrian swing bridges that the project uses to cross the canal without interrupting the navigability of its waters. At its inner part, between the harbour and the centre of the city, the dune is split in two parts. It offers a system of public open spaces on the crest, and, in between its arms, it holds the architecture of an experimental housing settlement. It accommodates a young, dynamic, wealthy social class, expected in the city within the next decade. This settlement is inspired by new ways of balancing privacy and social life, house and job, sport, culture and entertainment. It is a low-rise housing settlement with many private open spaces, combined with public spaces and taller translucent buildings with special purposes and a photovoltaic skin, crossed by a network of pedestrian suspended walkways connected to public transportation and the residential parking lots under the dune.
Project team: Roberto A. Cherubini, Antonio Menghini Calderón, Anna Esposito, Stefania Beciani
