For many Muslims making the holy pilgrimage to Makkah, the journey begins in Jeddah. Recognizing the resource strain from religious tourism, Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 plan outlined the need to address the city’s mounting concerns surrounding housing, mobility, and flooding.
SWA’s Central District master plan introduces 58,000 new accommodations with an impressive 40% of the total area dedicated to green spaces. These programs integrate with world-class facilities, including a state-of-the-art stadium, an immersive oceanarium, and a cultural hub featuring an opera house.
Sustainable mobility is a key focus, with enhanced pedestrian and cycling infrastructure integrated with mass transit systems. The Makkah Trail Park, reimagining the historic Hajj pilgrimage pathway, showcases Jeddah’s role as a gateway to Makkah.
Environmental strategies include flash flood mitigation, heat reduction measures, and native plant use for water conservation and biodiversity enhancement. Carbon reduction efforts encompass low-embodied carbon materials and energy-efficient design elements.
The project blends Al Balad and Hejazi vernacular forms with modern urban planning, creating a cohesive open space network that respects Jeddawi culture and Jeddah’s natural environment. By integrating park spaces with civic assets and designing areas to encourage socio-economic mixing, the plan aims to foster social integration and potentially facilitate upward mobility.
Guangzhou Guanggang Steel Park
Along the Pearl River, this stretch of Guangzhou’s industrial belt produced steel for nearly seven decades. Following the factory’s decommissioning in 2013, the site has been transformed into a carbon-negative landscape that weaves its industrial past into every design decision. Guangzhou Steel Park reshapes a legacy of environmental degradation into a m...
Burlingame Town Square
Since its founding in the early 1900s, Burlingame lacked a signature downtown open space. In 2009, the mayor and council kicked off an initiative to make downtown more pedestrian-friendly, including enhancing the Burlingame Avenue retail main street. The capstone of that initiative is the transformation of a one-acre parking lot between Park Road and Lorton Av...
Lynwood Mega-Playground
Inspired by the city’s rich history of aerospace research and manufacturing, Lynwood Mega-Playground brings a dynamic space exploration-themed playground to the heart of the Central Los Angeles city.
Completed in Fall 2024, the playground transforms the Northwest corner of Lynwood Park into a colorful spectacle with super-sized play features including a...
Pacific Plaza
The latest step in the renaissance of Downtown Dallas has arrived with Pacific Plaza, a 3.89-acre public park that serves the central business district’s burgeoning population and contributes substantially to the city’s outdoor experience. The first of an ambitious four-park initiative, Pacific Plaza complements adjacent urban greenspace with a varied program ...