The 7th Future City Game in Poland was played in Warsaw, in an area called Nowe Miasto, part of historical core of the city. Samborska Street, probably the shortest street in Poland, is located near the popular sightseeing route of the Old and New Town Squares. However, very few tourists come to Samborska as the area seems hidden and distant from sightseeing routes. The neighbourhood is very quiet, with mostly older residents. Just around the corner, there is a high school for architecture and design, but there is little interaction between the school and the local community.
The participants focused on reviving and reshaping the street, which currently resembles a tiny wild garden, with a broken gate at one end and a dead end at the other. The Mayor of the district where the street is located wants to transform Samborska into a lively spot that is attractive to the tourists who visit places nearby. He attended the final presentations of the ideas generated, expressing his hope that elements of the ideas could be incorporated into the city’s plan to revitalise Samborska Street. The Samborska Future City Game was co-organised by Śródmieście District City Office.
24-metre kerbstone rule
The winning idea proposes significant visual changes to the street by replacing asphalt with old style paving. To enliven the street and make it more attractive, the idea introduces a ‘kerbstone rule’, with twenty-four one metre sections marked on the kerbstones, and amusing information ‘imprinted’ on the paving stones, e.g. how many chocolate bars one needs to lay a 24m long line; how much time a car, a train and a turtle need to cover the distance of 24m, etc. In the backlit glass showcases, the local residents could present their old photos. The team would also like to introduce a mural – a group of colourful houses painted on the wall of one of the houses. To encourage the participation of local residents in the decision-making process, a letterbox for ideas, suggestions, etc. would be put on Samborska Street.
240 years in 24 metres – the shortest history of Warsaw and the Varsovians
The team focused on the inclusion of Samoborska in the sightseeing route to attract tourist into the area. So, how do they plan to achieve this? The members of the team divided Samborska Street into twenty-four parts (lengthwise), with each fragment telling a story of a decade in Warsaw's history, a single memorable event, outstanding resident, etc. In order to present it in a more user- friendly way the concrete pavement would be replaced by plexiglass with old black and white photographs underneath. After a period of time, one photo set would be replaced by another, so that this 'tell-a-story' exhibition would remain interesting. Visitors could also admire the photos in the evening, as the plexiglass squares could be illuminated – stepping on them would cause photocells to react and turn on the lights. Stone cubes serving as benches would offer visitors a place to rest, as well as a pleasant environment to admire a professional mural that would appear on the wall of one of the houses as a result of a competition announced by the City Council. And since Samborska Street is very close to the New Town Square, the team believes it would be a good idea to invite galleries to present their exhibitions in the Square itself. An attractive street full of fresh ideas could then become part of the sightseeing route.
Let there be light
Members of this team believe that Samborska Street could become a place to present Polish design, and an exhibition space for presenting student work from the neighbouring school of architecture and design. The idea introduces low, non-invasive illumination, modern ‘urban furniture’, replaceable over a certain period, e.g. on the basis of competitions announced by the City Council. While introducing modern elements, the players would also like to emphasise the old-town-like character of the street by installing two old-fashioned street lamps at its gate and marking the street’s boundaries with an ivy fence.
To make the street friendlier and safer, the team proposed getting rid of the rather dark dead ends by adding more spotlights on the sides of the street. A cycle path, an outdoor chess table, and a drinking fountain would make the area more attractive to both residents and visitors. The team also suggested transforming an unused boiler room into a cosy little café with Wi-Fi, and planting fruit trees to make the street greener. All these changes would improve the quality of life in the area. A notice-board to let residents and students of the neighbouring school of architecture exchange information, skills and services would encourage interaction between residents and students. To allow the street to ‘grab’ even more attention the group proposed an annual Samborska Street festival, showing films about the Old Town of Warsaw.
Ecological Vistula Samborska
This team envisioned an ecological future for Samborska Street by introducing renewable energy sources, e.g. the use of solar energy for the street’s illumination. One of the street’s attractions would be a artificial streamlet named ‘Vistula Samborska’, operating in closed circuit. The idea also encourages closer cooperation between the school of design and architecture and local residents The students of the school of architecture would design the whole system, and the project could be presented to the general public within the exhibition space created at Samborska Street for displaying student work. The street would also feature ‘urban furniture’ designed and produced as a result of a competition for architects and designers. The team also proposed establishing partnerships of the shortest streets from various cities and towns around the world.
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