ARCHIS SEE-NETWORK

Today (Wednesday, February 10), at 18:00 hours, Pravo na Grad (Right to a City) and Zelena akcija (Green Action) associations organize a peaceful Protest against the Theft of Varšavska Street. The protests were duly registered with the Ministry of Interior and is legal.

The organizers invite all citizens of Zagreb to join the defence of the pedestrian zone in Varšavska. This will be a different, visually attractive protest and the organizers will present the City of Zagreb with a 5m tall sculpture.

The protest will serve dual purpose. It will be an expression of public support to the demands presented by Pravo na Grad and Zelena Akcija, and will allow the citizens to join the Human Wall for Varšavska, a group that will participate in the future actions and protests in defence of the street. So far, more than one thousand citizens joined the Human Wall.

For additional information on the protests, the Human Wall for Varšavska, other actions and statements of support, visit the website http://www.nedamovarsavsku.net.

Today (Wednesday, February 10), at 18:00 hours, Pravo na Grad (Right to a City) and Zelena akcija (Green Action) associations organize a peaceful Protest against the Theft of Varšavska Street. The protests were duly registered with the Ministry of Interior and is legal.

The organizers invite all citizens of Zagreb to join the defence of the pedestrian zone in Varšavska. This will be a different, visually attractive protest and the organizers will present the City of Zagreb with a 5m tall sculpture.

The protest will serve dual purpose. It will be an expression of public support to the demands presented by Pravo na Grad and Zelena Akcija, and will allow the citizens to join the Human Wall for Varšavska, a group that will participate in the future actions and protests in defence of the street. So far, more than one thousand citizens joined the Human Wall.

For additional information on the protests, the Human Wall for Varšavska, other actions and statements of support, visit the website http://www.nedamovarsavsku.net.

The activists of Right to a City (Pravo na grad) and Zelena akcija (Green Action) environmental association started the permanent vigil in Varšavska Street in Zagreb, last night, about 4:00 hours, in the attempts to prevent the Hoto Group plans to dig the access ramp for the underground garage of the „Cvjetni“ project (formerli „Cvjetni prolaz“).

With the decision on the appeal of the citizens of Varšavska street expected today, and having in mind that the two associations don’t believe works will stop, regardless of the ruling, activists moved to set-up a continuous vigil in the street. They transported two shipping containers to the street, which will serve as info-points for citizens that want to join in the “Human Wall for Varšavska” action.

The containers were chosen because they are much more difficult to remove than the protesters bodies. Also, they make the digging rather difficult. Croatian actor Vili Matula explains that the action is an exercise in civic disobedience to "prevent opening of holes in the public space".

The Head of the City Department of Communal Affairs Davor Jelavi? says that the two containers will be removed by the police, and if the communal services are forced to do it, a bill will be presented for the works to the persons and/or organizations that brought them in.

Teodor Celakoski from the Pravo na Grad told net.hr that the Police came to Varšavska earlier this morning, but decided not to remove the shipping containers when activists climbed up the containers.



Mind you, I am not a pessimist, but that is how investors and owners of the Hoto Group thinks (together with the City of Zagreb - the partner in the project; Tehnika - the contractor; and, according to rumour, Hypo Bank as eminence grise of the project). Furthermore, although works were suspended because an appeal was filed regarding the decision of the City Hall to issue Hoto Group a working permit, we shouldn't be surprised if contractors recommence works in a couple of days or even later this evening. The fine they will have to pay for the violation of the 15-day suspension of works pending a decision in the appeal procedure, is minor compared to the capital that backs the project.

On the other hand, in spite of taking up the role of David in this fight, the organizers won the round. The works have stopped, for at least a fortnight, and, judging from the activists' views and opinions, they intend to continue to blockade, whatever the ruling on the appeal may be.

The activists of Right to a City (Pravo na grad) and Zelena akcija (Green Action) environmental association started the permanent vigil in Varšavska Street in Zagreb, last night, about 4:00 hours, in the attempts to prevent the Hoto Group plans to dig the access ramp for the underground garage of the „Cvjetni“ project (formerli „Cvjetni prolaz“).

With the decision on the appeal of the citizens of Varšavska street expected today, and having in mind that the two associations don’t believe works will stop, regardless of the ruling, activists moved to set-up a continuous vigil in the street. They transported two shipping containers to the street, which will serve as info-points for citizens that want to join in the “Human Wall for Varšavska” action.

The containers were chosen because they are much more difficult to remove than the protesters bodies. Also, they make the digging rather difficult. Croatian actor Vili Matula explains that the action is an exercise in civic disobedience to "prevent opening of holes in the public space".

The Head of the City Department of Communal Affairs Davor Jelavi? says that the two containers will be removed by the police, and if the communal services are forced to do it, a bill will be presented for the works to the persons and/or organizations that brought them in.

Teodor Celakoski from the Pravo na Grad told net.hr that the Police came to Varšavska earlier this morning, but decided not to remove the shipping containers when activists climbed up the containers.



Mind you, I am not a pessimist, but that is how investors and owners of the Hoto Group thinks (together with the City of Zagreb - the partner in the project; Tehnika - the contractor; and, according to rumour, Hypo Bank as eminence grise of the project). Furthermore, although works were suspended because an appeal was filed regarding the decision of the City Hall to issue Hoto Group a working permit, we shouldn't be surprised if contractors recommence works in a couple of days or even later this evening. The fine they will have to pay for the violation of the 15-day suspension of works pending a decision in the appeal procedure, is minor compared to the capital that backs the project.

On the other hand, in spite of taking up the role of David in this fight, the organizers won the round. The works have stopped, for at least a fortnight, and, judging from the activists' views and opinions, they intend to continue to blockade, whatever the ruling on the appeal may be.

I'm pretty much sure that the guys from Kuda.org can tell us more about it.

Nevertheless, Novi Sad will have a first Skate park with 1.200 sqm located in Liman neighbourhood.

Soon as the construction is finished, Novi Sad will be recognised on the European Skate Park map.



Check out the video about skate park from the last year

watch?v=cwtZhhFyi4k

I'm pretty much sure that the guys from Kuda.org can tell us more about it.

Nevertheless, Novi Sad will have a first Skate park with 1.200 sqm located in Liman neighbourhood.

Soon as the construction is finished, Novi Sad will be recognised on the European Skate Park map.



Check out the video about skate park from the last year

watch?v=cwtZhhFyi4k

Exhibition and Publication, Scenarios for socialist collective housing estates in Bucharest

An Archis Interventions, Zeppelin and Point 4 initiative, launched in cooperation with ATU, Space Syntax Romania, Hackenbroich Architekten and Platforma 9,81.

Exhibition: AedesLand, Savignyplatz, Else-Ury-Bogen 600-601, 10623 Berlin
Duration: 8th Sept.–29th Oct. 2009

A Romanian/English publication will accompany the exhibition:
Stefan Ghenciulescu, Constantin Goagea, Kai Vöckler (eds.), Magic Blocks. Scenarios for socialist collective housing estates in Bucharest. Bucharest: Zeppelin Association 2009. ISBN: 978-973-0-06942-6

Photos by Dragoş Lumpan.

The cityscape of Bucharest is dominated by huge, standardized public housing estates built during the socialist era, mainly in the 1970 and 1980s – in which circa 70 per cent of the city's population still live. These 'concrete curtains' flank established major traffic axes, blocking the view of the parts of Bucharest that lie behind them. Alongside them stand more recently built estates, with a total of as many as 400,000 inhabitants. Following the collapse of state socialism and the introduction of a market economy, most public housing was privatized. Sitting tenants were able to acquire their apartment for a minimal sum. Market factors have since come into play: an apartment's value falls or rises according to its location, amenities and local infrastructure; some apartments are of interest to investors; others are suffering from neglect. Neither officials in the City Housing Department nor individual owners (most of whom are owner-occupiers), are equipped to cope with the new situation – and it is here that the »MAGIC BLOCKS« initiative seeks to make an impact. Launched by Archis Interventions in cooperation with local and international architecture offices and projects, »MAGIC BLOCKS« will present scenarios for the future development and use of housing estates and thereby stimulate public discussion of housing and other social issues in Bucharest. The exhibition illustrates this concept in the light of supplementary information on overall urban development in Bucharest.



»Magic Blocks« opens up a new area of debate in architecture: it addresses the, until now, largely unexplored drawbacks of the privatization of public housing in former eastern bloc countries and asks, what alternatives are available.


more info: e-zeppelin.ro


Zeppelin – Stefan Ghenciulescu, Constantin Goagea, Cosmina Goagea
Point 4 – Justin Baroncea, Carmen Popescu, Jean Craiu
Archis Interventions – Kai Vöckler
with
Space Syntax Romania – Esenghiul Abdul, Christian Beros
ATU – Vera Marin
Platforma 9,81 – Marko Sancanin
Hackenbroich Architekten – Wilfried Hackenbroich


The project is financed by the Romanian Cultural Institute through the Cantemir Programme. The project »Archis Interventions« is supported by ERSTE Stiftung.
We thank: Union of Architects Romania, Austrian Cultural Forum Bucharest, and Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bucharest

Archis Interventions in cooperation with Pixels Production

Start of production August 2009

A public campaign designed by Archis Interventions/Prishtina will accompany the process of legalization of informal building in November 2009. Public presentations and a media campaign will broach the issues regarding the most important principles (security, infrastructural connections, social aspects) by raising public awareness.



In addition to public presentations and reports in different media, a TV show is planned, which will be produced in collaboration with Pixels Productions, Prishtina. Different TV channels such as Kohavision/KTV expressed their will to broadcast the show. The TV show will be produced by Visar Geci, co-founder of Archis Interventions/Prishtina and a renowned TV star in Kosovo, in cooperation with Florina Jerliu and Kai Vöckler. Eight broadcasts on different subjects have been planned, recorded on selected sites in Prishtina. They will include the responses of citizens and officials to the situation in dialogue with Visar Geci:

1. Safety: Escape Routes > safety aspects
2. Statics: Building extensions and ground floor cut-offs > safety aspects
3. Minimal Distance: blocked neighbors > social conflicts
4. Overburdened infrastructure: sewage, water supply > life quality
5. Public space: abandoned public sites > life quality
6. Periphery: unconnected city extensions > life quality
7. Natural resources: protection and improvement > life quality
8. Responsibility: common responsibilities > future perspective



The recording of the first 2 broadcasts started at the end of August. The production will be completed in October this year.

Supported by ERSTE Foundation.

Workshop in Kotor, Montenegro/ July 17-18, 2009

Participating: Analog, Archis Interventions, Co-PLAN, EXPEDITIO, Platforma 9,81, Pula Group

The initial meeting of several architectural initiatives and organizations who are dealing with the spatial transformation of the Adriatic coastline in Croatia, Montenegro and Albania focused on an exchange of information by presenting individual research findings and projects. In addition, the driving forces behind the spatial transformation were discussed and a future collaborative project outlined.

In general the Adriatic coastline is facing extensive urbanization triggered mostly by tourism and this has a problematic impact on natural resources and also on domestic economies. There are a number of very different protagonists in this process: the national governments and local municipalities, foreign investors (mostly in Croatia and Montenegro), and private entities, both local and from other regions of the country.



Main issues

-no alternative to tourism economy is being focused on either by the national or the local politicians and persons responsible. Alternative economies are to be addressed by spatial strategies
-the new spatial metropolitan-rural interaction requires new forms of planning and architecture
-public space is suffering as a result of this development process: how can tourism be made public? How can public access still be guaranteed?
-other forms of »tourism« should be addressed by specific programs, for example »cultural tourism«
-protection of natural resources and cultural heritage



Perspective

A new image of the region is required, a vision that not only takes the spatial transformation into account, but also develops a perspective beyond the usual strategy of focusing only on tourism. This vision should include the different aspects of a new landscape, the role of culture and the necessity of public participation.

Supported by ERSTE Foundation

Workshop: AStrategy for Collective Housing, A Legacy of the Socialist Era
Bucharest / April 3-5, 2009

Organised by Archis Interventions together with the Zeppelin Association and Point4, in cooperation with ATU, Space Syntax and Platforma 9,81

All over former Eastern Europe, collective dwellings built in the Socialist era are now in a critical state, in terms both of their structure and their social function. Privatization of this housing fund in the early 90s led to a paradoxical situation. On the one hand, complete social disintegration has left to a chaotic individual development of the units (apartments) and derelict communal spaces. Complete rehabilitation of this housing no longer appears even remotely possible. On the other hand, despite its physical similarities with housing estates in Western countries, this housing was created not to serve disadvantaged social groups (i.e. as "social housing") but as a political means to level class differences (i.e.: as "housing for everybody"). Few alternatives were available and these neighbourhoods consequently still enjoy a degree of social mix and urbanity - although its decline has certainly set in.

Bucharest, one of the largest cities in South-Eastern Europe, is characterized by this type of prefab housing, which accounts for 70 per cent of the city's total housing stock. Bucharest's development was quite specific however: large estates developments were here planned as extensions of the city, not as new towns; a huge number of them are situated in the inner city core, the result of totalitarian planning in the 1980s; and the radical socio-political upheaval of 1989 caused abrupt, extensive change. This makes it a perfect place to study the relationship between totalitarian planning and ultra-liberal growth, between the collective and the individual, and the private and the public spheres.




Results of the workshop - Analysis of the current state of collective housing and development of maintenance strategies

The workshop analysed the current state of collective dwellings built in the socialist era in Bucharest and developed urban, architectural, technical and legislative strategies for these neighbourhoods. The results will be presented locally in June 2009 - in an exhibition supplemented by a programme of public discussions and interventions - and then later be integrated into the "Balkanology" exhibition at the Architekturzentrum Wien/Vienna in October 2009. The project's long-term aim is to support existing programs and also to develop new strategies and model projects.

Supported by ERSTE Foundation, The Austrian Cultural Center and the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Bucharest

Workshop on the qualification of the urban development in Prishtina
Kosova / March 13-15, 2009

In cooperation with the Municipality of Prishtina and Co-PLAN

Archis Interventions/Prishtina, together with Archis Interventions/Berlin organized a workshop on illegal construction in Prishtina, with the aim of developing a strategic concept ("Manual"), which would enable institutional reaction on an ongoing process of illegal buildings' treatment.

In addition, the workshop has to reflect its strategy concept how it can be generalized and being also helpful in different circumstances with regard to international discourse on urban issues, as represented by the Archis network.



Results of the workshop - The concept for a "Manual" and recommendations on the legalisation process

The first step in developing an implementation strategy was a workshop, in which experts were brought together to develop a "Manual" that explains the principles (relating to security, infrastructural networks and social aspects, etc.), necessary to improve the present situation. The "Manual" was conceived in cooperation with international and local experts, including representatives of the Municipality, the Institute for Spatial Planning of Kosova, and other official organizations.

The workshop participants developed joint recommendations and strategies on how to act in the near future, and jointly formulated provisions for the "Manual". They consider this to have made an important step towards bringing major policymakers into closer contact and cooperation with regard to the legalization issue. It is planned to implement the strategies in summer 2009, in cooperation with the Municipality.

Supported by Friedrich Ebert Foundation and ERSTE Foundation

The exhibition “Balkanology – New Architecture and Urban Phenomena in South Eastern Europe” will be presented at Architekturzentrum Wien/Vienna in October 21, 2009 – January 18, 2010. A conference will accompagny the exhibition from November 6 – 8, 2009. It is planned to extend the “Turbo Urbanism” section of the exhibition with other researches and projects done by member initiatives of the Archis SEE network.

A first meeting of several members of the Archis SEE network took place as part of the conference »Operation: City 2008« in Zagreb, Croatia, in December 2008. Member initiatives’ public presentations illustrated different approaches to intervention in the urban development of their respective cities and were discussed with the audience.

www.operacijagrad.org

_Exhibited at the Swiss Architecture Museum SAM, Basle, Switzerland

Exhibition:
»BALKANOLOGY«
New Architecture and Urban Phenomena in South Eastern Europe

SAM – The Swiss Architecture Museum, Basle (04.10. – 28.12.2008)
in cooperation with the Architekturzentrum Wien/Vienna

Supported by ERSTE Foundation

Curated by Kai Vöckler



In the “Turbo Urbanism” section of the exhibition, four members of the Archis SEE network – Co-PLAN, Tirana; Platforma 9,81, Zagreb; EXPEDITIO, Montenegro and Archis Interventions, Prishtina – were invited to present their work, alongside research projects conducted by Srdjan Jovanović Weiss and Dubravka Sekulić & Ivan Kucina.

»Balkanology« brings together leading architects and urban planners from South Eastern Europe and shows their approaches to fundamental urban transformations. The exhibition illustrates the cultural, social and political dimensions of urban phenomena in the region. The key questions here are, to what extent unregulated, informal urbanism develops new typologies and urban forms, and whether these forms could also emerge under the banner of neo-liberal de-urbanisation in the rest of Europe.

The exhibition presents research projects and concrete interventions, architectural analyses and planning strategies. »Balkanology« deliberately avoids trying to achieve a picture of urban development that would be valid for the whole region. Instead, it uses selected examples from different locations to highlight specific local influences on architecture and urban construction, and thus critically examines the potential for reassessing the scope of urban planning. The Archis SEE network is presented in the exhibition as an ongoing project to assemble different initiatives from the region, for the exchange of knowledge and development of further cooperation. This section of the exhibition shows how initiatives undertaken by architects, planners and urbanists reacted to changes in their respective cities, and how their various concepts and strategies intervened in urban development.

www.sam-basel.org