Transforming an Old Industrial Area near the Izmir Port

Izmir Democracy University

Project idea

The main goal of this project is to repurpose an old industrial area. The area is in the intersection of important locations in the center of the city but most of the buildings are out of use, not safe, and very old. So the buildings can be renewed and used for different functions.
There is a transfer station called ‘Halkapinar’ for metro, Izban (another type of metro for Izmir), busses, and the last station for the tram. So the site is seen and could be used by many people. That means there are opportunities to use the site effectively.
To achieve these goals, the buildings on the site will be transformed into workshops, cafes, restaurants, shops, offices, housing. To allow people to sell and earn money with their products there will be small stands to display and sell items they made in the workshops.
The workshop area is located in the south of the site due to the Izmir Municipality Fablab near that location. The buildings for workshops are covered with a ‘roof’ to use the top of the buildings and look at the sea.
New bridges will be added to the south and north of the site to allow everyone to reach the sea. There will be canopies and sitting areas everywhere possible.
A 20x20m grid will be distributed everywhere on the site to provide a continuous pattern on the area.
The Anadolu Street going through the site will be expanded to allow pedestrians and bike paths to be seperated from the cars and traffic. It’s currently 8meters wide, but it will be 11 meters minimum.

Project description

Izmir is a busy city and it has developed so much in last years. But the port region is not fully developed. There is a transfer station for the metro, Izban (another type of metro for Izmir), bus, and tram. It’s a crowded transfer point. Also, there is a port near the stations. In addition to these, the area is a business center. There are skyscrapers, shopping malls, traffic, old houses around the area.
The site that is being transformed is located in the middle of these important points. A part of the site is used for stacking shipping containers, another part is for old repair shops, flower sellers, some people go there and sit near the road and sea, etc. Also, there is a municipality building on the site, and a building owned by a company. But most of these buildings are empty and not used due to changing the preferred industrial area in the city. The port is still in use. The buildings are in the middle of the city near the sea and other important locations but are not used effectively.
To solve this problem, the site is redesigned. In this design most of the buildings are repurposed, some old ones are replaced. Also, there are new bridges designed for safely passing the viaducts and traffic to reach the sea. There is an opportunity to evaluate the site as a meeting point for passengers that are using the transfer station, to pass time while waiting for the bus or someone, or just simply spending time near the sea.
The buildings on the site will be used for workshops, cafes, restaurants, shops, offices, and housing.
The workshops will give a new aspect of producing and creating new industrial chances. Cafes and restaurants will make it easier to spend time on the site. Also, the shops, offices, and houses will be used.

Technical information

The site is almost 150.000 square meters, the tallest buildings near the site vary from 210 to 240 meters. There is a construction on the site for a 30-floor housing building. That building will reach almost 100 meters after it’s finished. Currently, the tallest building on the site is 24 meters. Most buildings on the site are has 2 floors.
The viaducts reach 10 meters in height maximum. Anadolu Street going through the site is 8 meters wide.
The pedestrian bridges 15-meters wide. Their slope is %6 maximum.
The design is modeled in ARCHICAD, section and elevation drawings, scaled drawings, information on plans are made in ARCHICAD. The design has started and finished in ARCHICAD fully.
After the technical drawings, the colors, sky, people, ground line, some dimensions were added in Photoshop.
Visualizations are made in Photoshop and LumiON.
Also, the presentation boards are prepared in Photoshop.

Created in: