Low Garden: Greening Below Ground | FAP 2022 Merit
September 6, 2022
Urbanisation has led to an increasing loss of green areas in Hanoi. This has been exacerbated by traffic congestion and air pollution. And a spike in the number of residents in the city means that the demand for civic and community spaces is increasing too.
The team proposed to transform abandoned pedestrian tunnel spaces, which have been associated with low use, lack of hygiene and safety, into sustainable green spaces that are attractive and safe. They posit that this will attract more public users to these forgotten places while helping to increase the extent of green spaces in the city.
The team chose the pedestrian tunnels at the intersection of Nga Tu So in Dong Da district as their pilot project site. The underground space is deserted and underused, as well as falling into degradation with litter and public urination, etc. The tunnel network is deemed as complex, dark, unfriendly and unsafe for use.
To reinterpret it into a public space for good, they suggested integrating greenery/green spaces by applying new technologies to enable planting trees underground, renovating the walking and cycling routes, and expanding the walking tunnel to incorporate vendors to activate these areas.
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FUTURARC PRIZE 2022: MERIT
Nguyen Kien To and Chu Minh Duc are from the architecture department of the Hanoi University of Civil Engineering (HUCE), Vietnam. In the context of increasing urbanisation, they want to develop sustainable green spaces based on forgotten gaps in the heart of the city.
PROJECT DATA
Project Location
Dong Da District, Hanoi, Vietnam
Site Area
5,430 square metres
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