Details
Type: Open competition; Ente Kochi Urban Design Competition, organised by GIZ, Kochi Municipality and urbanista.
Collaborators: Bala Nagendran, Chandrasekaran S, Ganesh Babu R P, Radhakrishnan T R
Location: Kochi, Kerala, India
Commendations: Second winning team. Contracted to develop the Masterplan and Detailed Project Report (DPR)
More information: Link to competition website
Collaborators: Bala Nagendran, Chandrasekaran S, Ganesh Babu R P, Radhakrishnan T R
Location: Kochi, Kerala, India
Commendations: Second winning team. Contracted to develop the Masterplan and Detailed Project Report (DPR)
More information: Link to competition website
#SpatialStrategy #UrbanDesign
Kochi’s significance in the region is largely due to its extensive green-blue network, with interconnected canals, rivers, lakes, and backwaters - the backbone of urban development. However, the pressure of urban expansion has resulted in acute stress on the ecological networks of Kochi, and exposes it to the effects of climate change and annual flooding - one that disproportionately affects the urban poor and vulnerable. Weaving with Water is a water driven collective framework towards a climate-proof Kochi, that addresses the intersections between four layers: Ecology, Infrastructure, Community, and Governance. We propose an integrated Kochi Water Vision for the greater urban area that addresses the watershed basin holistically, through 4 strategies:
1. Regenerative blue-green networks for a resilient Kochi
2. Adaptive infrastructure for an economically thriving Kochi
3. Livable neighborhoods for a socially inclusive Kochi
4. Collaborative decision-making for an equitable Kochi
2. Adaptive infrastructure for an economically thriving Kochi
3. Livable neighborhoods for a socially inclusive Kochi
4. Collaborative decision-making for an equitable Kochi
Participatory toolkit
The Kochi Water Vision and Mullassery Canal redevelopment are realised through a ‘Toolkit’, containing water-based solutions to specific issues observed along the canal in the layers of ecology, infrastructure, community and governance. The solutions are organised along scales, stakeholders, spatial typologies, cost, and carbon footprint of the interventions. A ‘scenario building game’ can be played with the Toolkit, among communities, municipality, designers, developers, and individuals to find water-sensitive solutions for their neighbourhood. The toolkit can be used to regenerate other canals of the city and envision a collective future with the local community, in a truly participatory process.
The Mullassery Canal is reimagined as a water-sensitive zone, regenerated and activated through a combination of solutions from toolkit and site-specific design interventions. The four complementary strategies aim to regenerate the blue-green networks of the area, supported by adaptive urban infrastructure and liveable neighbourhoods, weave together a resilient Mullassery Canal through a collaborative governance model. The set of strategies, tools/solutions, and design interventions together envisions to weave WATER with Kochi’s urban life by making it an integral place-making and image-making component at all scales and typologies. Two sites (Site C, Site B) were chosen for detailed design.
Site C- Revive: The design approach at Site B was to revive the canal mouth into an eco-sensitive zone- with mangrove belts, retention basins, micro wetlands, and floodable sport arenas for effective water management. The dedicated cycle and pedestrian network along the canal and across Priyadarshini Park ensures seamless, last-mile connectivity. The Canal Market is a new home for informal vending with an amphitheatre in Priyadarshini Park, for democratic discussions about the area’s development.
Site B- Retrofit: The design approach at Site B was to retrofit water management solutions to the existing urban fabric, with minimal transformation: green roofs, roof gardening and micro detention basins in form of rain gardens, water courts inside buildings. To create an active edge and an inclusive play street, the first row of buildings along the Mullassery canal road are proposed to undergo a phase-wise redevelopment into mixed use, high density, affordable housing (in situ relocation).
