Stefano Boeri Designs the Tirana Riverside Neighborhood, Tackling post COVID-19 Needs

Written by Christele Harrouk
Published on June 03, 2020

Stefano Boeri Architetti has unveiled its recent scheme for Tirana Riverside, in the Albanian capital. Tackling post-COVID 19 needs, the imagined neighbourhood, a first of its kind in Europe, is a technologically-advanced, green and sustainable novelty, designed in agreement with the Government and the City Authorities.

Created to respond to the new needs of the post-COVID 19 pandemic phase and conceived as a solution for the homelessness emergency caused by the 2019 earthquake, the Tirana Riverside project takes on many challenges. Designed for 12 thousand people, the neighbourhood also meets all the sustainability measures required by the current climate crisis.

In collaboration with SON-Group, the Stefano Boeri- scheme puts in place an eco-friendly and self-sufficient intervention, “equipped with all the technology found in today’s Smart Cities and capable of guaranteeing the safeguards and health safety requirements necessary to face the uncertain post-COVID 19 future scenarios”.

It is no coincidence that Albania and Tirana are the first in Europe to accept the challenge of creating a Smart, eco-friendly and self-sufficient energy district in a few months that will be capable of responding not only to post-earthquake emergencies, but also satisfying post-COVID 19 health requirements and the needs dictated by the climate crisis. Tirana represents one of the most advanced areas in terms of urban and sustainable planning and we are happy to be able to contribute once more to planning its future. -- Stefano Boeri.

The proposed urban regeneration project mixes a combination of functional and social features, for different cultures and social groups. Accessible and self-sufficient in terms of clean energy, water, food and all urban public services, the masterplan designed for a publicly owned area, is located along the northern border of the municipality and close to the Tirana River. Highlighting new housing solutions to residents, the project will host ground floors dedicated to retail and commercial activities with access to residential, sports and workspaces and numerous outdoor areas. Along with the masterplan, “guidelines for the design of individual buildings are planned, with the aim of working closely with the area and reactivating small and medium-sized Albanian businesses”.

The Tirana Riverside project makes it possible to collaborate with local production and professional firms as part of a valuable process of sharing know-how and drawing up guidelines to establish new urban quality and design standards. The inclusion of small and medium-sized businesses highlights the feasibility of the Masterplan and the importance of creating such an innovative and self-sufficient neighbourhood in an area previously affected by the earthquake. Being so accessible, domestic and dynamic, Tirana Riverside will attract young and old, foreigners and locals alike. -- Francesca Cesa Bianchi, Stefano Boeri Architetti Partner.

Essential public services are grouped in three locations, at an easily accessible pedestrian distance from each other. The project will include public and administrative urban functions, numerous services for the city, a school and a university centre. On another hand, public and private greenery and vegetation are distributed throughout communal areas, vertical surfaces and on roofs. Solar panels make each building a source of production and storage of clean energy, creating a local energy network available to all residents.

Just presented to the Albanian Council of Ministers, the new Tirana Riverside project “offers extremely high performance from a seismic, energy and mobility point of view, aimed at creating a safe and secure public space on a human scale”. Construction works are scheduled for early summer with the aim of delivering the first housing units within twelve months.

Stefano Boeri Architetti – Partner: Stefano Boeri, Francesca Cesa Bianchi
Design Team Leader: Carlotta Capobianco, Andrea Zucchi
Team: Orjana Balla, Corrado Longa, Jacopo Colatarci, Yulia Filatova, Sara Gangemi, Besart Gjana, Federico Godino, Paloma Herrero Ermakova, He Ruoyu, Mattia Tettoni, Luca Tognù, Shilong Tan
Local Partner: SON-Group - Ilir Bejleri
Mobility: MIC - mobility in chain - Giuseppe Vallelonga, Filippo Bissi, Alessandro Bruscaglioni
Landscape: Studio Laura Gatti Partners - Laura Gatti
Sustainability: Transsolar - Tommaso Bitossi, Clara Bondi
Structural Engineering: SCE Project
MEP: ESA Engineering