HAIFA BREAKS GROUND

Haifa, Israel

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HAIFA BREAKS GROUND

Haifa, Israel

Firm

WANNABE architects

Type

Landscape + Planning › Masterplan

YEAR

2013

HAIFA BREAKS GROUND
Project’s Order on Behance: http://bit.ly/1d1o4uR

I QUESTION THE WAY PLANNERS GRASP AND TREAT 3D (THREE-DIMENSIONAL) CITIES SUCH AS HAIFA. CITIES, WITH A DRAMATIC TOPOGRAPHY ARE TREATED SIMILARLY TO TWO-DIMENSIONAL CITIES (FOR INSTANCE, TEL-AVIV). IN BOTH CASES BUILDINGS ARE SPREAD OVER THE CITY'S “SURFACE”/”SKIN” ONLY.
THE DIFFERENT STRUCTURAL QUALITIES OF THESE TWO TYPES OF CITIES ARE NOT TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.
I CONCEIVE HAIFA AS A CASE STUDY IN ORDER TO EXAMINE A THREE DIMENSIONAL INTERVENTION IN A THREE DIMENSIONAL CITY.
HAIFA IS DIVIDED INTO THREE PARTS: THE SOUTHERN PART, INCORPORATES HAIFA'S HIGH TECH INDUSTRY, THE NORTHERN PART, INCLUDES HAIFA'S TRADITIONAL INDUSTRIES, AND THE CARMEL, WITH ITS MANY NEIGHBORHOODS THAT SPREAD OVER CARMEL MOUNTAIN’S RIDGE. THESE THREE PARTS ARE NATURALLY DISCONNECTED DUE TO THE TOPOGRAPHICAL DIFFERENCES.
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THE CARMEL TUNNELS, OPENED IN 2010, BRIDGE BETWEEN THE CITY'S NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN PARTS, AND YET IGNORE ITS THIRD PART – THE CARMEL. WHEN TRAVELING THROUGH THE TUNNELS ONE IS NOT AWARE OF MORIAH AVENUE, ONE OF HAIFA'S MOST VIBRANT STREETS AND CARMEL'S MAIN ROUTE, NEITHER PHYSICALLY NOR CONCEPTUALLY.
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MORIAH AVENUE AND THE CARMEL TUNNELS ARE TWO SIGNIFICANT URBAN AXISES WHICH DO NOT CROSS IN SPACE. HOWEVER THROUGH A PENETRATING "X-RAY" VIEW FROM ABOVE, AN INTERSECTION POINT SPOTTED. THIS POINT IS LOCATED IN THE VICINITY OF QIRYAT SEFFER SQUARE... A HIDDEN 'G' SPOT TO BE DISCOVERED.
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TWO MAIN PLANNING STRATEGIES ARE USUALLY UNDERTAKEN IN HAIFA TODAY: (A) IN PARALLEL TO THE TOPOGRAPHY LINES (LIKE A TYPICAL "GARDEN CITY" STREET) AND (B) IN PERPENDICULAR TO THEM (LIKE "THE CARMELIT", HAIFA’S UNDERGROUND LINE).
LOOKING AT THE 'G' SPOT, I SUGGEST A THIRD STRATEGY: A “Z-AXIS” OPERATION THAT TIES TOGETHER TWO URBAN, SIGNIFICANT HORIZONTAL WAYS: THE CARMEL RIDGE AND THE CARMEL TUNNELS.
REASONS:
1. HAIFA HAS EXPERIENCED NUMEROUS "PLANNING DISASTERS" (THE GRAND CANYON SHOPPING CENTER, THE CINEMALL COMPLEX, HOF HA'CARMEL HOTEL, ETC...). THESE DISASTERS DAMAGE HAIFA'S NATURAL RESOURCES AND ITS VIEW. IN SEVERAL DECADES, THE CITY'S "SURFACE"/”SKIN” WILL TURN INTO A JUNGLE OF DISCONNECTED BOXES WITH OPAQUE WALLS AND FLOATING JUNCTIONS. THE CITY'S PASTORAL CHARACTER, WHICH DRAWS ON THE THEORIES OF "GARDEN CITY", WILL BE LOST FOREVER.
AS AN ALTERNATIVE, I SUGGEST A VERTICAL “Z-AXIS” MEGASTRUCTURE (ANTI-STRUCTURE) THAT WILL COMBINE A TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM FOR PEDESTRIANS AND VEHICLES, AND WILL ALSO INCORPORATE VARIOUS PROGRAMS IN THE DEPTH OF THE MOUNTAIN, EXCLUDING RESIDENCE.
WE FACE A CHOICE BETWEEN LIFE AND WORK ON THE CITY’S SURFACE ONLY, THAT IS TORN AND DISRUPTED BY “BIGNESS” STRUCTURES AND GIANT INTERCHANGES, OR A NEW LIFE IN A CITY WITH AN EXTERNAL FREE "SKIN" AND AN INTERNAL "ORGANS", WHICH VACATE THE EARTH'S SURFACE FOR NATURE, VIEW AND HIGH QUALITY RESIDENCE.
2. THE TRAIN ISSUE. HAIFA IS BLOCKED BY A RAILWAY THAT PREVENTS DIRECT ACCESS TO THE SEA. BY EXPANDING THE TUNNELS AND BUILDING A NEW RAILWAY TUNNEL IN PARALLEL WITH THE EXISTING ONES, HAIFA WILL BE SET FREE AND IT WILL REGAIN ACCESS TO ITS SHORES. A TRAIN STATION INSIDE THE MOUNTAIN, IN COMBINATION WITH A VERTICAL “Z-AXIS” TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM, WILL ALLOW PLACING A TRAIN STATION ON TOP OF THE CARMEL.
3. TRANSPORTATION. THE CARMEL NEIGHBORHOODS WERE PLANNED DURING THE BRITISH MANDATE AND AFFECTED BY "GARDEN CITY" THEORIES. THE ENTRANCE AND EXIT FROM EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD IS DONE THROUGH A SINGULAR POINT ON MORIAH AVENUE CAUSING TRAFFIC JAMS IN RUSH HOURS. IN ADDING, THE FACT THAT THERE'S NO DIRECT CONNECTION BETWEEN THE RIDGE AND HAIFA'S SOUTHERN PARTS IT CREATES CONSTANT CONGESTION OF TRAFFIC AND PARKING.
A “Z-AXIS” TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM WILL ALLOW RESIDENTS TO ENJOY SERVICES THAT MORIAH AVENUE HAS TO OFFER, WHILE LEAVING THEIR CAR IN A PARKING LOT DEEP UNDERGROUND.
4. SAFETY. “Z” CREATES AN URBAN SPACE THAT ALLOWS THE CITY TO FUNCTION IN AN EMERGENCY.
5. TIME. ADVANCED TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS THAT TRANSFER VEHICLES THROUGH THE MASS OF THE MOUNTAIN RAISE THE QUESTION ABOUT THE CONCEPT OF TIME IN A THREE DIMENSIONAL CITY. INSTEAD OF SPIRALING DOWN THE MOUNTAIN, VEHICLES WILL BE TRANSFERRED FROM THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN TO ITS PLANAR REGIONS, AND BACK, IN A MATTER OF MINUTES.
THIS TRANSFORMS THE THREE DIMENSIONAL URBAN ENVIRONMENT INTO A 4D (FOUR DIMENSIONAL) SPACE, WHERE TIME COUNTS.
THE "Z-AXIS" SYSTEM PRESENTS A NEW CONCEPT OF AN URBAN STRUCTURE FOR A THREE DIMENSIONAL CITY AND ITS PLACE IN THE WIDER CONTEXT OF ITS ENVIRONMENT (A METROPOLIS, FOR EXAMPLE). A STRUCTURE THAT DOES NOT OPERATE ONLY ON THE CITY'S "SURFACE"/”SKIN” BUT CREATES INTERNAL ORGANS THAT WORK SIMULTANEOUS TO THE CITY’S EXTERNAL, EXISTING ONES.
THE PROJECT DEALS WITH PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS THAT EXAMINE THE DISCIPLINE'S EXISTING OBSERVATIONS AND METHODS OF READING AND TRANSLATING INTO URBAN TERMS. THIS IS DONE IN ORDER TO DISPLAY A SET OF IDEAS FOR FLEXIBLE THINKING ABOUT VARIOUS ISSUES IN A 3D (THREE DIMENSIONAL) URBAN ENVIRONMENT, IN THE NEW CITIES OF TOMORROW.
Link to HAIFA BREAKS GROUND online short explanation brochure: http://WANNABEarchitects.com/haifa
Moving diagram: http://youtu.be/_r7sjXrKu20