What could the Market Square in Dobczyce look like? Students of landscape architecture from the Faculty of Architecture at the Cracow University of Technology sought the answer to this question. As part of the "Integrated Design" course, they created projects presenting proposals for the development and future vision of the Dobczyce Market. The works were created thanks to the cooperation between the Department of Landscape Architecture of the Faculty of Architecture at the Krakow University of Technology and the Dobczyce Municipality. Its authorities want to use the students' inspirations to discuss with residents the future of Dobczyce, including the representative market space of the town. The premiere presentation of the students' works at the Faculty of Architecture of the Krakow University of Technology was attended by, among others, Mayor of Dobczyce Tomasz Suś and Rector of the University of Technology Professor Andrzej Szarata.
Dobczyce - space, greenery, history
© Aleksandra Jachimczyk
We set the students a difficult task. First, in nine teams of three, they were to create a master plan for the future development of the town, from which they then drew guidelines for detailed design work dedicated to the market space itself. This was also the main topic commissioned by Dobczyce. The goal was to make the market more accessible and attractive to residents," says Dr. Miłosz Zieliński, from the team conducting classes within the Department of Landscape Architecture WA PK (together with Dr. Przemysław Kowalski).
Dobczyce 2.0. Leap into the future
© Konrad Koziel
The design work was preceded, among other things, by a site visit and a visit to the Dobczyce Municipality and Town Office, as well as an online survey conducted by students among residents. As many as 200 people responded. When asked what they liked best about the market, residents pointed to "the atmosphere of the place, greenery, flowers." In turn, they saw as problems to be solved: "the omnipresence of cars and increased traffic, few places to sit and food outlets." Students used qualitative data from the surveys, and the results also became the basis for design decisions.
Over the course of a semester of very intensive work, 27 individually prepared designs for the Dobczyce market were created - from very bold proposals, heavily interfering with the current structure, to cosmetic proposals, subtly only correcting the space, but producing clear functional effects anyway , explains Dr. Milosz Zieliński.
Dobczyce - on a wave of change
© Beata Paprzyca
In their projects, the young landscape architects were not afraid, for example, to propose a new location for the town's buildings, i.e. moving the offices of the Town Hall or the Court from the center of Dobczyce to the vicinity of the Dobczyce Dam, so as to gain space for more greenery or new meeting places and relaxation for residents and tourists. They also had various ideas for calming car traffic in the market (from raising pedestrian crossings, introducing a traffic calming zone to shutting down car traffic altogether). Some referred in their revitalization ideas to the symbolism of the Raba River and Dobczyce Lake, which are important to Dobczyce's identity.
The ideas of our students are comprehensive and diverse, sometimes they may seem too bold. But that is their task - to broaden horizons, initiate discussion, and give it more context. Cooperation with local governments, similar to the one we have with Dobczyce, is an important part of Krakow University of Technology's activities. Student visions are often the beginning of changes in the real world. I hope they will also be useful for the authorities and residents of Dobczyce. Any change regarding public spaces is a challenge for the community, and requires a good explanation of the idea behind it. In this, too, our students and experts can help local governments," says the rector of PK, Prof. Andrzej Szarata.
Dobczyce - space, greenery, history
© Katarzyna Sowiak
The 19 most interesting student projects, presented in the form of plaques, will now be transferred to Dobczyce. There, they will soon be made public as part of an exhibition that is intended to be the start of a discussion on the future of the market.
They will be a stimulus for discussion, and will give us a hint of what our town may look like in the future. The Polytechnic students' projects are a lot of very valuable material for us in the context of the big challenge we have with the Dobczyce market. We are preparing for its revitalization, but on the way of evolution, social consultation, not revolution, " said Mayor of Dobczyce Tomasz Suś at the Polytechnic.
And he announced that even the bold ideas, such as, for example, the proposed relocation of the Town Hall into a space with better access to parking spaces, or looking at a new arrangement of the market using the Raba River as an inspiring motif, are worth considering as a manifestation of the young designers' fresh perspective.
The presentation of WA PK students was attended by the rector of PK Prof. Andrzej Szarata (on the right), the mayor of Dobczyce Tomasz Suś and his deputy Edyta Podmokły
Photo: Jan Zych
We want to work out an overall concept for the development of the Dobczyce market in this term of the city government, together with residents and local entrepreneurs, very willingly with the further participation of experts and students of the Technical University, whom we invite to Dobczyce and participate in our discussions," added themayor of Dobczyce.
The mayor of Dobczyce thanks Dr. Milosz Zielinski, who together with Dr. Tomasz Kowalski (behind him) conducts design classes with students
Photo by Jan Zych
The acceptance of the invitation has already been confirmed by the Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Architecture at the Technical University, Dr. Urszula Forczek-Brataniec. The presentation of the students' works was also attended by Deputy Mayor of Dobczyce Edyta Podmokły and employees of the municipal departments of Investment and Spatial Management and Environmental Protection. The University of Technology was also represented by the head of the Department of Landscape Architecture WA PK Prof. Agata Zachariasz, who recalled that experts from the Cracow University of Technology have been participating in design topics related to Dobczyce for more than 20 years, supporting their implementation with knowledge and experience.
Students of the Faculty of Architecture at the Cracow University of Technology
Photo: Jan Zych
