Category
Community & Retail

Team
arkee studio Pty Ltd

Organiser
TAMAYOUZ DEWAN

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Project Location:

Dakeer Island, Basra, Southern Iraq

Project Status
Design Competition

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Project Time

2023

Project Area

​Approx. 96,870 m²

Vision

The masterplan respects and follows the city’s characteristics and patterns, re-establishes the layout according to city grid, open spaces, and circulation. It maintains and re-defines urban structures, open and water spaces, making it a starting point for the area’s transformation. The plan establishes a network of streets between 6 and 18 metres wide, using shared space approach to create a safe traffic system with pedestrians, cyclists, and public transport on an equal footing to cars.

 

Relevance & Challenges

Instead of applying monolithic architectural solution to improve design and planning, this proposal created a permeable urban block strategy with several blocks of buildings at north and south ends, different building types vary in size and height from 800 m² to 18,000m² and from one to four floors, provide an incredibly diverse variety of accommodation for infrastructure and services including different types of programs. The water edge landscape treatment also improves the condition of the water and sanitation, offering a better waterfront experience for local people and visitors. Street grid pedestrian design has also implemented into the masterplan to further avoid traffic congestion, inadequate public transportation and insufficient pedestrian infrastructure.

 

Response

The masterplan offers a divers variety of programs on Dekeer island, such as 18,000m² fish market including loading and unloading zones, 16,000m² sailing club consists of clubhouse facility, boat storages, launch recovery facilities, and high-end hotel restaurants, docks for boats, river taxi station and sailing club, pedestrian and shared bridge design, food and beverage area at northern end, also well-planned landscaped public spaces at the southern end. Using distinct roof canopy design to integrate all building blocks together while providing adequate shading to visitors, this masterplan presents a highly organised urban and architectural design solution to establish a new urban standard for sustainable, long-term development for the next generation to come.