At the beginning of September this year, work began on the "Avenue of Rosesanew" project. This is the project selected in the 2019 Kraków civic budget. It is a unique space in the largest district of Krakow, which for many years, especially after the "deleninization", needed changes. We talk to Albert Rejman of Gajda Studio Projektowe about what the new Avenue of Roses will look like.
Wiktor Bochenek: The Avenue of Roses is not only an important, but also a historically difficult space in Nowa Huta. What was it like to lead the design process?
Albert Rejman (Gajda Studio Projektowe): Due to the history of the Avenue of Roses and the scant information on the formation of greenery at the time of its establishment, we originally decided not to attempt to restore any of the historical phases of its transformation. As indicated by the name of the budget task "Avenue of the Roses for New", the project introduced a new functional arrangement of the interior while respecting its history.
The composition of the space was based on the main axis and the axes determined by the rhythm of the facade. The indentation (which was planned to be preserved in the first concepts) and its main divisions were determined by the geometry of the tenements and the entrances to the premises located on the first floor from the side of the square. An analysis of the green areas along Rose Avenue inspired the rhythm of the divisions.
The project envisaged the creation of a functional, aesthetically pleasing and green space for relaxation, conducive to social interaction. The idea, in two variants, was presented to the so-called Consultation Team appointed by the Investor, which included, among others, representatives of units of the City of Krakow, the applicant of the Civic Budget project and specialists in the field of landscape architecture.
visualization of the unrealized concept
© GAJDA Landscape Architecture
Despite the initial acceptance of the proposed solutions and the positive opinions of the task force members, the final decision of the Municipal Conservator of Monumentswas that the project to revitalize the area of the Avenue of Roses took the form of a reconstruction of the state of the square from the late 1950s. The project was based on a historical search prepared by Professor Agata Zachariasz. From the information we were able to obtain, this is the only reconstruction of the design of the space from the Socialist Realist period in Europe.
Phases of the Rose Avenue transformation
© GAJDA Landscape Architecture
Victor: What, above all, will change in the Avenue of Roses? What old solutions, lost in time, have been returned to?
Albert: The project involves restoring the old layout of the space by eliminating the alcove and creating an oval green space in its center (PHASE 1 in the visualization). A second row of trees, lawns and, above all, a bed of roses in historical varieties will return to the Rose Avenue area. A road of decorative cobblestones, designed on the basis of analysis of archival materials, will be introduced around the greenery. The benches and waste baskets, which will be introduced into the revitalized space, have been faithfully recreated on the basis of old photographs and postcards.
poster accompanying the realization
© GAJDA Landscape Architecture
Wiktor: What will be new in this space?
Albert: The new elements in the space are those designed to facilitate the use of the space by modern users, such as bicycle racks and an urban spring with drinking water. The project also involves improving growth conditions for existing trees by flattening the space within the root balls and using permeable paving.
Wiktor: The Avenue of Roses is also a problem in the "Polenin" space, how will the place where this monument stood until 1989 be solved?
Albert: The revitalization was based on an attempt to reconstruct the condition of the late 1950s, that is, the time before the construction of the Vladimir Lenin monument. Therefore, the project does not assume references to this element.
Viktor: Thank you for the interview!
conceptual design of the Avenue of Roses
© GAJDA Landscape Architecture
