The Al-Hamriya Project: PHASE 4

Focus Area Plan

The street edge area is the public face of Al-Hamriya. Since the overall master plan is focused on local, sustainable development, it does not accommodate for large amounts of new traffic or development. Therefore, the street edge must accommodate a large amount of parking and be attractive to visitors and locals. The main strategy is a streets cape that provides shade, and a variety of moments including a central plaza, quieter garden spaces, and shaded walkways.
Upon further analysis, we found that the surrounding area does not have many parks (none within walking distance). This and the convenient topography of the mountain lead us to propose a park that would connect to the plazas, and serve mostly people from outside of the area (probably living within 1-2km).

Street Edge - Area Plan

The Area Plan works to integrate the functional need for parking. Since there are other proposed developments such as the souk, there need to be parking and links between the two sides of the road which are well designed and pedestrian friendly. Several buildings will be demolished for this to happen, but the benefit will be a larger parking capacity which will support economic development, and aesthetic benefits to both sides of the road.

Perspective leaving Garage. A shaded walkway with integrated seating. A concept for the garages to help integrate them into the urban fabric is to add small shops along the periphery on the bottom floor. This will not only hide them in relation to the mountain, but also create a source of income for this generally unprofitable kind of structure.

The proposed underpass is a way of connecting the sides of the street with without impeding traffic. The underpass must be inviting and comfortable to walk through, and we understand that underpasses are often perceived as unsafe spaces. The proposed underpass will have several skylights for natural light, restaurants to ensure activity. It is also an opportunity to create a space to escape the heat in, as it will be underground and therefore more thermally stable.

Perspective coming up from underpass into the main plaza. The entry to the souk is a plaza, surrounded by shaded walkways, shops and landscaping. The space must be large enough to accommodate large events like any plaza, and integrate into the rest of the Al-Hamriya Street scape.

Initial Area Plan - focusing on the scale and function of the street-scape. Shading and landscape features organized along a modular grid, creating a variety of plazas, shaded walkways and places for respite for pedestrians. Underpasses connect the two sides of the street without impeding traffic which is currently a problem in Al-Hamriyah.

The concept for a unifying street focuses on using reused materials and local labor for construction. This helps creating jobs for unemployed expats on the site, and a way to reuse materials from other on-site projects. This strategy also must have several functions - including shading, creating cool micro-climates with the use of thermal mass as thermal batteries, seating, spaces that can double as kiosks or tables for selling produce or sitting. Additional features such as cisterns and planters watered by HVAC condensate may be included in developing the sustainable on site ethic.

Perspective view of the streetscape along the main road. Where there is space, quiet, shaded spots will be created for respite. Here a rammed earth wall helps mitigate the noise from the cars for the pedestrians.

Perspective of a section of this street-scape shows a wall from reused CMU, a variety of paving from onsite stone, and plants and shade structures to create a unique sense of place.