Submitted by WA ContentsFoster + Partners unveils masterplan for Constana, Romania Romania Architecture News - Feb 20, 2025 - 14:11 html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"Foster + Partners has unveiled design for a masterplan for a 38-hectare site at the heart of Constana, a port city in the Dobrogea historical region of Romania. To create the masterplan, the practice collaborated closely with regional stakeholders and IULIUS, a Romanian real estate developer and operator that specializes in mixed-use urban redevelopment projects. With its cultural and educational institutions, retail stores, entertainment venues, sports facilities, and botanical gardens, the design revitalizes the formerly industrial area and creates a bustling "city within a city.""It is a great honour for us and a unique opportunity for Constana to create a new destination, which stitches together the urban landscape and completely transforms the experience of the city," said Stefan Behling, Head of Studio, Foster + Partners."Greenery is woven through the masterplan, with a series of interconnected parks, gardens, and vibrant community spaces that make use of existing industrial structures.""The city's unique character and historic significance is celebrated and enhanced through our design," Behling added.Ideally situated in the heart of Constanta, the masterplan's impact is expected to go beyond the site and will benefit the entire city. The mixed-use plan provides a variety of year-round activities and attractions that appeal to both locals and tourists, addressing seasonal variations in visitor numbers.The project incorporates new building and public space typologies that are currently absent from the city's urban fabric, drawing on insights from comprehensive community surveys.The site's extensive landscaping is inspired by the local ecological background, and hundreds of mature trees improve the city's inhabitants' quality of life and the environment.For community events and gatherings, existing buildingslike silosare transformed into theaters and pavilions. The site's boundaries are surrounded by new bike lanes and green spaces that improve mobility and bring together previously disconnected areas of the city.Extensive landscaping across the site draws inspiration from the local ecological context, with hundreds of mature trees providing environmental benefits and enhancing wellbeing for the citys residents"We are excited to be part of Constanas future. By transforming the urban wasteland into a vibrant hub, we invite locals, investors and tourists to be a part of this transformative journey," said Maximilian Zielinski, Senior Partner, Foster + Partners."Capturing the essence of the Black Sea, the regeneration project embraces the natural elements and landscapes. The proposal is deeply anchored in the citys rich history, from its Greek and Roman origins to its more recent industrial heritage," said Daniel Zielinski, Senior Partner, Foster + Partners.Before construction starts, IULIUS will prepare the formerly industrial site with a comprehensive bioremediation effort.The masterplan provides new typologies of buildings and public spaces, which are currently missing from citys urban fabricFoster + Partners' BDO Unibank Campus broken ground on Manilas Makati Avenue, Philippines. In addition the firm created a three-dimensional layered roof for Apple's new store in Malaysia. Moreover, the firm unveiled a revitalization masterplan for an earthquake-hit region Hatay in southeast Turkey, after the terrible earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on February 6, 2023. Foster + Partners' BDO Unibank Campus broken ground on Manilas Makati Avenue, Philippines.All images courtesy of Foster + Partners.> via Foster + Partners