Ecologically sensitive planning and construction is the need of the hour and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, LLP (SOM) has once again bagged its third big project at Danang, Vietnam. The proposed plan for Danang is SOM’s third project win after its successes of designing Green Tech City at Hanoi and FPT City at Danang. Commissioned by the Trugnam Group which specializes in real estate, hydroelectric power and construction, the proposed project is expected to cover an area of 375 hectares at the northern edge of Danang along the Cu De river.
The current plan for the project which SOM is presently finalizing with the city planning authorities intends to incorporate in the final layout a series of distinct districts with residential neighborhoods, facilities for education, sports and leisure. There is also scope for developing a village centre and a business district within this eco-city as envisaged in the blueprint.
Since the proposed eco-city will be located at the mouth of a river, the architectural plan envisages the possibility of floods and has incorporated forward looking storm water strategies which when implemented will preserve the natural landscape and the existing watercourses. Accordingly, SOM intends to create a series of terraced levels (currently the best practice for on-site storm-water management) which will ensure flood protection during stormy conditions, sea level rising and tidal conditions in the South China Sea. Furthermore, SOM through the proposed plan also intends to protect, restore and enhance the present ecosystem along the river frontage of Danang which in turn will prevent rainwater runoff thereby providing a source for irrigating nearby areas.
Public spaces have also been designed in the heart of the neighborhood thereby providing all amenities at a walking distance of barely three minutes. With a proposed capacity of housing 30,000 people, the upcoming eco-city also plans to demarcate the city based on population density with the north having more of quiet residential neighborhoods. The SOM group with its rationale of designing a city with reduced carbon emissions and energy needs has through its superior architectural designs managed to not just set a benchmark for environmental planning but also for ecologically sensitive development in Vietnam.
Via: BDOnline/SOM [Press Release]
