Master plans, or large-scale urban planning projects, are one of the main tools for shaping and structuring land use and development to ensure that the built environment is coherent and functional. The interventions vary in scope and approach. While some projects are extending the buildable area by creating floating neighborhoods off the coast of Florida, others are reusing the existing spaces and heritage to reimagine the future of their communities.
This week's curated selection of Best Unbuilt Architecture highlights large-scale urban design projects submitted by the ArchDaily community Offices such as Aedas, LDA Design, Proctor & Matthews Architects, WTA Architecture + Design Studio are showcasing designs that create or reimagine entire neighborhoods, whether on land or on water, in cities all over the world, from Ukraine to Malawi, India or the Philippines.
Read on to discover 9 curated master plan projects, along with their project descriptions from the architects.
Wenzhou Innovaland Start-up Zone
Wenzhou is planned to be one of the global high-tech cities by establishing Wenzhou Innovaland. The start-up zone integrates technology, finances, wellness and education, creating a mixed-use innovative hub in Wenzhou. Aedas Executive Director Yaochun Wen and Global Design Principal Dr. Andy Wen have jointly led the team to create a pioneering space in the zone.
Little Lemon
Little Lemon is the new floating neighborhood in the constructed wetlands of Biscayne Bay. Rising sea levels and real estate forces in Miami ask for creative solutions. The Green Loop filters bay water and protects the hood from storm surges. Caribbean shutters, spacious terraces, pergolas, and porches provide identity and outdoor space. Together with colorful finishes and shed roofs, it has a characteristic tropical look with a modern touch. The image strengthens the community to feel interconnected with their floating neighborhood.
Lindner Garden Residence
Within 20 minutes from Tirana, Lindner Garden Residence is the first investment of its kind in Albania, bringing the concept of a city within the city. The complex has been designed based on a well-organized community comprising various services such as business and retail, education, recreational, parks with an abundance of green, sports fields, swimming pools, etc. The residential area is composed of different typology houses such as apartments, semi-detached, row, and luxury villas; each equipped with private gardens.
Solina Silk Factory
Architecture Dialogue was the winner of the international competition for the Solina Silk Factory or Reshamkhana in Srinagar, Kashmir, which is a 22-acre campus with a number of industrial heritage buildings. The project is envisioned by the J&K Industries and Project Implementation Unit, Jhelum Tawi Flood Recovery Project, with the support of the World Bank to prioritize the regeneration of this industrial heritage site and, more importantly, support local artisan livelihood. Currently, the site is an open ground with a collection of unique industrial buildings that are mostly vacant.
Grand Chirchiq
Grand Chirchiq will be a brand new 792-ha district in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Central Asia. We have developed a master plan and concepts for residential and social architecture, landscaping, and recreation areas along the water. Key features of the project include the gentle synergy of the existing natural riches with the designed water-green framework and multifunctional blocks-based residential areas, made with respect to nature; all the objects are linked to the water-green framework, and the majority of housing has direct access to it; quay as a recreation area; contemporary architectural accents with respect to local cultural heritage, and residential buildings that vary in classes and architecture styles.
Horizon Manila: Manileño
WTA Architecture + Design Studio
Horizon Manila: Manileño is a 419-hectare reclamation project located in Manila, Philippines, master-planned by WTA Architecture + Design Studio. The development seeks to rediscover and embrace the city’s role as the heart and soul of the country. With the vision to build 28 distinct communities, Horizon Manila aims to adopt a sustainable lifestyle rooted in self-sufficiency, climatic adaptation, and cultural resiliency.
Impney Estate
LDA Design, Proctor & Matthews Architects
Custodians of the Estate, Impney Ltd, are looking to realize a sustainable future for the Grade II* Impney Hall and the wider 140-acre estate which surrounds it. The ambitious proposal has been drawn up through a comprehensive Estate masterplan by LDA Design. Within this, Proctor & Matthews Architects have master-planned and designed the new village of Little Impney, set in the Hall grounds. The overall Estate masterplan includes a Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment, the restoration of Impney Hall, and the landscaping of the vast naturalistic parkland which ties the scheme together.
Malawi Secondary Cities Plan
The population of Malawi is expected to grow from 18 million to 45 million by 2050. With available agricultural land occupying about 40% of the footprint, it is estimated that Malawi will soon reach a critical point where family farms (smallholders) will no longer be able to sustain themselves. The Secondary Cities Master Plan points to the crucial role that secondary cities should play in creating infrastructural, operational, and cultural interaction between the two ends of the divide described above.
Northern Saltivka
As a result of the military aggression of the Russian Federation and the bombing of the city of Kharkiv one of the most affected areas is Northern Saltivka. Therefore, this area was chosen for the sketch project for reconstruction. The main idea is to implement a city block residential development with public buildings of mixed-use, which include commercial and office spaces. This will help solve a number of important problems, in particular, the uncomfortably high height of buildings, the lack of normal public spaces, the problem of "nobody`s" yards and the socialization of the inhabitants. Moreover, such a development will bring Kharkiv closer to the European format of life, where the idea of micro districts was rejected several decades ago.
HOW TO SUBMIT AN UNBUILT PROJECT
We highly appreciate the input from our readers and are always happy to see more projects designed by them. If you have an Unbuilt project to submit, click here and follow the guidelines. Our curators will review your submission and get back to you in case it is selected for a feature.
