Next Stop "Bab El Had", Rabat 2011

The project focuses on public spaces in Morocco and the site is located along the west’s Almohad’s wall surrounding the medina of Rabat and includes two historical places: Bab El Had and Bab El Alou, two old «doors» access of the old city of Rabat, connected by a road.  It is the residual space, an urban void, between the old city - the traditional Medina - and the modern city, surrounded by a large area of public spaces as Ibn Sina’s park, the central market and Bab El Alou’s door. Although this area being a central one to the city, it is not treated as a public space by the municipality and the users. The purpose of the project is then to "activate" that urban void, proposing four major but punctual actions all along the site.

The first one is to extend the space and the second one is to work on its accessibility. By creating a new streetcar stop, a new connection is made between the area and the rest of the city. An underground parking is designed to offer 1120 parking spaces that can absorb the high amount of cars. On another hand, new uses as shops and cinema are proposed, and that play a role of an urban connector defining the site as the new cultural area of the city. Finally, and after several tests and researches, a structuring element is created to cover the site by a wooden roof. Its design brings a new light, a new atmosphere and a new identity to this void. The void is not altered since the structure only flies over it, but a virtual perimeter is defined by that roof, aiming for a future spontaneous and natural appropriation of the place by everyone.

Duration: 6 months / Status: Non realised