More greenery, attractive services, convenient movement around the area. Such, in the assumptions of the capital's City Hall, is to be the center of the city, if all the changes that make up the New Center of Warsaw project can be implemented. Some of the work has already been done, several projects are just starting, and others have stalled. How do the city authorities want to change its most important space?
The New Center of Warsaw is the common denominator for several projects located in the very center of the capital. Today, the space contains spotty attractive squares, which, however, do not build a network of public spaces. The strategy for change announced a year ago, which is just now entering the phase of concretization, includes merging them and taking advantage of the synergy effect. As a result of the work carried out by the City Council, a series of guidelines for the designed spaces has also been developed.
As part of climate change adaptation measures, it is planned to significantly increase the biologically active area, today accounting for only 10% of the area. In the planned architectural competitions, preference is to be given to solutions that retard runoff and collect rainwater or integrate renewable energy sources in small architecture.
The second priority is to befacilitating pedestrian and bicycle traffic. Widened sidewalks and additional bicycle paths will be complemented by the introduction of residential zones and tempo 30 zones. The architectural attractiveness of the entire area is to be strengthened through the revaluation of historical buildings and spaces, but also the introduction of contemporary elements of urban furniture and art in public spaces. The way the area functions is to maximize the multifunctionality of the area. Cultural functions are to coexist here with commerce and services. Thus, the priority officially goes to the users, not to the district's residents - who are a minority group here.
Central Square
© A-A Collective
The guidelines also cover very practical issues in the design of public spaces and subsequent execution. Suggestions include the reuse of existing elements such as granite curbs and basalt pavers, and the prioritization of solutions that build resilience to climate change.
Against the backdrop of such an advanced and detailed stage of planning and organizational work, it may come as a surprise that the site has not yet been included in the current Local Development Plan. The LSDP for the Eastern Wall area, which was put out over five years ago, has still not been adopted. In the meantime, the entire area has been significantly transformed, and some of the important buildings have changed not only their function, but also significantly in terms of size and the way they are connected with public spaces. We are talking about Sezam, Universal and Rotunda, among others. So what changes await us in the near future?
Five Corners Square
Five Corners Square
© ZDM / WXCA
The irregular square at the intersection of Bracka, Zgoda, Szpitalna, Widok and Krucza Streets, cut in half by Chmielna Street, is one of the most characteristic and in need of change spaces in the center of Warsaw. The place, dominated today by automobile traffic, is to be transformed into a space aimed mainly at pedestrian users. The new consistent flooring on one level is to emphasize its continuity and the subordination of vehicular traffic to pedestrians. Tree plantings and small architecture are to change the scale of the space to a more intimate one. It is a pity, however, that the design by WXCA and Michal Kempinski does not designate more biologically active areas. With the unresolved problems of Chmielna Street, where the city is unable to enforce restrictions related to its theoretically pedestrian character, the planned pedestrian character of the place is also in question. Implementation of the changes is expected to begin in 2021.
Powstancow Square
Warsaw Insurgents Square
© ZDM / MAU
One of the debatable parts of the Warsaw city center redevelopment project is the target function and shape of Powstańców Warszawy Square. A concessionaire has been selected to build an underground parking lot under the square, located on Świętokrzyska Street, and arrange the square in its new form. City authorities announce that the investment is intended to move parking spaces from the streets underground. However, it is hard not to notice that such an investment will be an additional traffic generator in a space that was supposed to be calmed down in this respect. In addition, it conflicts with strategic assumptions related to adapting the city to climate change.
Central Square
Central Square
© A-A Collective
The most iconic space in the city center is set to change with several related developments. The empty space of today's Plac Defilad is to be filled with the new Museum of Modern Art building already under construction, the relocation of the Emilia Platter pavilion from Emilia Street, and the construction of the so-called Central Square according to the winning concept by A-A Collective. Playing with the historical sentiments of Varsovians, the project is an attempt to reconcile the history of the site, with representative functions and the need to create a more intimate, human scale foreground of the Palace of Culture and Science. The greenery, ponds and fountains, as well as the recreational spaces between the Museum and the Palace have a chance to become one of the most interesting urban public spaces in Poland.
Green Marszałkowska
Cross-section of the new Marszałkowska Street
© UM Warsaw
The most extensive changes, aside from the Parade Square, are to involve the reconstruction of Marszałkowska Street. A street of very different scale and width stretching from Unii Lubelskiej Square to Bankowy Square today resembles an airport runway in places. The roadway, which is several dozen meters wide, is planned by City Hall to turn into a green, densely wooded thoroughfare with wide sidewalks and two-way bicycle paths on both sides. Its accessibility is to be further strengthened by marked-out above-ground pedestrian crossings and the reconstruction of squares and intersections. The project, which has already passed the public consultation stage, includes planting almost a thousand new trees.
Jana Pawła II Avenue
Jana Pawła II Avenue after the changes
© ZDM
However, the avenue, which is not part of the New Center of Warsaw project, is a good example of the direction in which changes in the city center will be heading. After several months of reconstruction, the above-ground pedestrian crossings at the Forty-Year-Old Roundabout in the vicinity of Central Station were put into use in December. The space gained after narrowing the roadway by one lane in each direction has been used for bicycle paths, wide sidewalks and parking spaces. The whole area has been supplemented with high and low greenery, and in technologically complex places, over the railroad tunnel, the green spaces are covered with sedum. The changes introduced give one of the main routes in the capital's downtown a human dimension. And although the still-scaled street with a huge flyover is not the most pleasant place to walk, its pedestrian users are no longer discriminated against as much as before. Unfortunately, the ideal is still some way off. The continuity of bicycle paths along the entire length of the avenue has not been maintained. Also, the designated pedestrian crossings do not cover the entire traffic circle and all directions. There is still a distance of 600 meters between the nearest zebras at the UN and Forty-year-old traffic circles. And while the appearance of new connections is a qualitative leap, they are still not the standards of downtown areas in a European city.
Jerozolimskie Avenue
Warsaw Downtown station after expansion
© PLK
Jerozolimskie Avenue is also set to undergo a thorough transformation. In connection with the planned modernization of the railroad cross-city line between Warszawa Zachodnia and Warszawa Wschodnia stations, the spaces above it will be thoroughly rebuilt. This will provide an opportunity not only to change the character of the avenue, but also to build a link to the subway at the Śródmieście station or the planned brand-new commuter rail station under the De Gaull Roundabout. Plans also include moving the Warszawa Powiśle station closer to the Vistula River. However, Warsaw residents will have to wait until their late twenties for this project to be realized.
