Drawings by Architect Alexis de la Cruz
All around the world cities by the sea try to get advantage of their location and the enormous potential that waterfronts have for promoting outdoor living, recreation and related cultural and commercial activities. It is in this environment that people find an ideal ambience to channel their need for balancing everyday life with Nature. Cities like New York, Boston, Baltimore, London, Marseille, Barcelona, Rotterdam and Genoa to name just a few have progressively developed their waterfronts to turn them into highly attractive recreational and sport areas suppressing their existing industrial character.
Paradoxically Havana’s growth along colonial times neglected the relationship between the city and the sea based only upon defensive criteria for it was not until the beginning of the twenty century that this issue was appropriately addressed with the construction of the Malecón, the iconic seaside boulevard that reclaimed the landscape values of the Gulf of Mexico. Unfortunately land speculation stopped this idea to have further extension when the city grew westward as Miramar and other coastal developments missed this concept.
The Master Plan for 21st Century Havana conceives of the waterfront redevelopment as a key concept to increase public space and to provide a significant improvement to public transportation. It aims to develop the structure of both urban spaces and buildings by orienting the latter towards the sea in a way that its presence is felt even inland with seafront boulevards, squares, parks and promenades that will help to create new streetscapes and a pedestrian friendly ambience that encourages outdoor living and social and cultural integration.
Aerial view of the Parque Maceo showing the increase of public space. Drawing Arch. Alexis de la Cruz
The whole waterfront area has been divided into sectors for a detailed study and for concrete proposals showing the attributes, existing conditions and potential for future development.
The Harbor Sector- number 5 in the schemes- is considered the most important one and it helps illustrate both the working method and the scope of the proposals. We believe that the principles applied to the regeneration of the Havana harbor can be applied to the rest of the city1. The harbour area was also divided into sectors for a more detailed study of each zone.
In environmental terms the proposal involves the sanitation of the harbor area and the existing rivers. In this regard, one of the key aspects is to turn the current industrial character of the harbor into a commercial, sport and recreational one allowing at the same time for the increase of public space in its entire perimeter and the creation of new mixed use areas mostly for residential, commercial and cultural facilities as well as for nautical sports.
The Master Plan for the Harbor. Drawing by Architects Joel Estevez, J. C.Toledo and Alexis de la Cruz
