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The Old Port - A contribution to Urban Thessaloniki
Prof. Holm
Download Prof. KLEINMANN presentation HERE!
It is not any 100 years ago, that Thessalonikis waterfront was a highly vital web of commercial and social life. The city was directed straight and closely to the sea and the waterfront, as some kind of interface with all sorts of activities, transfers and tales of a life beyond the big sea, was a brilliant integrated, symbolic place of identification for the people. Solid and fluid, presence in every day life and contemplation, diversified urban narrowness and wideness of imagination.
Today we miss the feeling of this tremendous mix of social activities, the magnitude of an urban heartbeat, the multiplicity of different uses anticipating unknown and secret forms fo life, longings and dreams.
Today we are concerned with a noisy "parallia" -Niki street- noisy in itself by own produced acoustic irridations of coffee bars and traffic sounds. There is no more the "voltage" along the quay walls unlike the dynamic movement of boats, vessels and the collateral social interaction.
Today the seafront is mostly related to a visual experience, which the population of Thessaloniki is used to and has internalized as a high value -the unspoilt view parallel to the row of house in the first line between the Old Port and the White Tower, to the glittering sea, to the cargo-ships anchoring on the roadstead in the Thermaikos Bay and to Mount Olympos, mostly hidden in a foggy veil, promising connectivity and openness for a earthly and mythological outside world.
But nevertheless the question arises, whether all these characteristics are sufficient enough in terms of a discussion on current quality necessities in public spaces of that specific and unique situtation, as we come across with the seafront of Thessaloniki.
what are the potentials of the seafront? How can we emphasize them? Is it necessary to emphasize them? The uses at the ground level along the Niki Street have quite interesting aspects of social exchange -but rather more for the younger generation. Is this satisfactory and adequate enough?
Is there a need for change and improvement?
If we bring to our mind the yearly scenario of the Film Festival Thessaloniki and the special impacts to this area, we would say "Yes!" -because we all understand there is an unused chance Thessaloniki should not fail to seize!
The tongue of land of the Old Port turns for two weeks into an absolute focus of cultural and social encounter, a meeting for young and old, a miscellaneous brewage of Greek and foreign languages, this all creates an atmosphere of internationality and transforms Thessaloniki into a Balkan platform in its best sense.
However for the rest of the year there is too little impulse, although on the area of the Old Port there are excellent possibilities to densify with intelligent urban and architectural interventions in the current situation.
The aim of this workshop is to discuss the contextual situation and to present ideas for permanent urban revitalisation with good and convincing qualities of social interaction, communication and meeting.
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