“Chernozemnomorie” is a joint work of INSIGHT ADB, MLA +, Knight Frank, OTS Lab: urban planners + urbanists + architects + economists + transport specialists. This large-scale work (it was necessary to master more than 200 hectares of partially built-up coastal territory) was completed in a very short time (1 month) in November 2020.
  The project was carried out as part of an open all-Russian architectural and urban planning competition for the creating of the concept for the development of Petrovskaya Embankment in Voronezh. Here we want to show how we saw the symbolic territory for Voronezh in the context of the task from the organizers of the competition.
  Voronezh is a million-plus city that has a unique urban structure, it is “cut” in two by a water mirror, has its own man-made sea in the center. However, to this day, this water surface does not have a decent frame, the embankment that will be worthy of the city.
  The large-scale design area and the tight technical task made it clear the main task: yes, we want the embankment, but we want some changes now, tomorrow we want to walk in handsome  ”near-center”. And, of course, no one has trilliards for this, because the improvement of the territory does not directly bring income. And that’s exactly what we did, proposing in the first stage the development of the “Chernozemnomorie” project.
  The main element of the new embankment is the Lighthouse. It is "planted" on the continuation of the axis of the street. Bolshaya Streletskaya is a high-altitude dominant of the territory with a spiral rise to the main observation platform. On the ground floor there is an entrance to the elevator and public toilets, on the second and third food court. Upstairs there is an open observation deck with free access for visitors. The lighthouse is enclosed in a roundabout ring pier, serving both leisurely walks and leisure visitors. The design of the lighthouse is as light as possible, the facade cladding pattern originates from the structural element of the ship’s ship hull - the frame and is visible in all objects as the main link in the design code.
  In addition, the organization of the first entrance group is necessary in the area of intersection of Petrovskaya Embankment and Bolshaya Streletskaya.
  The lighthouse is the central figure of the entire embankment, and the main object of the 1st stage of construction. He is the main symbol of the “Chernozemnomorie”, because what a sea without a lighthouse, albeit with a replacement entertainment function. This is a multi-level food court over the Voronezh Sea with the opportunity to look a little down on the future.
The entire territory of the 1st stage is connected by wooden flooring and fragmentary arising shadow canopies. Massive logs located on the territory support the theme of naturalness, upon closer inspection, they represent places for relaxation.
All elements are made in a single style broadcast through the design code of the territory, the main ideas of which are as follows: naturalness, simplicity and purity of the natural landscape, the unity of man with nature.
The irreplaceable elements on the embankment are lighting elements - the mast.
Landscaping: the design work of the embankment is carried out mostly in the reclaimed area, which narrows the range of possible elements of landscaping. Existing greenery along the Petrovskaya embankment street is preserved, cleared of dead wood and garbage, takes the form of a well-groomed territory. The washed-up area does not have a black earth layer, in connection with this it was decided to use only those plants that are suitable for loose soil. Arrangement of biotopes (sizes in the plan vary from 23 m2 to 372 m2) with planting mainly grasses and cereals (evergreen sheep, feathery feather, sedge Ohimensky, sedge dough testsey, reedweed, bulbous ryegrass, medium-sized marsh, cecelria) in the reclaimed area in sandy ground .
  On the territory of the 1st stage, cycling ( &pedestrian) traffic is provided, as well as the movement of special machines and machines for servicing infrastructure facilities.
  All elements located on the territory are subordinate to maintaining the free and clean spirit of the “Chernozemnomorie”, measures emphasize the uniqueness of the place, because there are no similar precedents with the sea in the city center in Russia, so I want to give this territory a modern look, while maintaining a spirit of the place.
  Seasons:
  Use in the warm season is beyond a doubt: walks in the fresh air, meetings, sports and outdoor activities - there is everything to enjoy the warm season.
During winter, the territory is not conserved, it is used in full to create an ice sculpture park, outdoor games, natural ice for skiing and sports on ice, ski slopes are formed. In addition, there is always the opportunity to warm up in the lighthouse food court. Outdoor activities in the very center of the million-plus city.
  Sports and commercial park with universal building lots:
  In any case, the design area is so large that it will not be effective to give it completely for recreation: activators of the territory are needed to allow the place to be filled with life all year round. In order not to lose the valuable qualities of environmental friendliness, we propose to concentrate maximum activity in the area of Beach Quarters.
  The structure of beach districts is a framework of infrastructure (transport, landscaping, public spaces), on which universal lots for building are strung. The dimensions of lots of various sizes from S to XL are designed in such a way as to accommodate many different functions from sports to commerce and trade. Priority is given to sports and recreation: beach volleyball, beach roller-drum, beach soccer, beach disco ...
In order to create an expressive architectural silhouette, an urban planning regulation was developed for lots that regulates the density and height of buildings, the nature of the front along the streets, and the location of parking spaces. A library of recommended functions and recommendations on priority functions have also been developed.
  The universality of the lots will allow the project to develop most flexibly and adjust plans if they suddenly change. Given the fact that the city has not yet created a specific request for a specific set of desired functions for location on the embankment, universal lots are seen by us as the most realistic option, in which not the city offers ideas for filling, but interested people themselves come to the territory.
  More information about the project album can be found on the website petrovbereg.ru