CONCEPT
This project proposal focuses on the poetics of ordinary everyday urban life, which, in its best scenarios, embodies two key qualities from an anthropological perspective: vitality and connectivity. These two values are tangibly manifested in the urban environment around Pazarska Street (translates as Marketplace Street) in Stara Zagora, whose morphological and programmatic diversity, dynamic commercial activity, and spontaneous yet well-developed greenery our team embraces as starting points for the project.
In this sense, the project proposal is a deliberate attempt to validate and highlight several structural, large-scale, and functional characteristics of the area (such as its modularity, determined by the characteristic orthogonal urban planning grid of Stara Zagora, the repetitive scale of two types of building volumes within it, and the intimacy of the spaces between buildings, as well as the naturally achieved blend of public, residential, and recreational urban zones). The proposal refrains from seeking radical changes in the area.
Due to its favorable natural and geographical conditions, Stara Zagora has been an important economic and cultural center since Thracian times. It is also the first Bulgarian city to receive a new name even before the Liberation. The progressive attitudes of its society were reflected in the choice of architect for the city’s reconstruction after the destruction of 1877. Lubor Bayer proposed a uniform orthogonal street grid, characteristic of the most modern urban planning of that time. The only other Bulgarian city with a similar urban plan is Nova Zagora.
Other advantages of the area include its central location within the city, its direct connection to two parks to the east and west, and its proximity to the pedestrian zone, all of which are reinforced by the proposed intervention. Essentially, the proposed architectural intervention is a commentary on all the characteristics listed above. The project views the central axis of Pazar Street as part of a main pedestrian route connecting the two parks, further emphasizing it with graphic and programmatic elements. It serves as a backbone with a material and color identity expressed through warm ceramic tones and metal elements along the axis, organizing three large-scale interventions—one for each of the three zones—to highlight their unique scale and identity. The interventions are contextual to each zone and propose shared public spaces of various characters.
DEVELOPMENT SOLUTIONS
In Zone 1, a new type of square space called “The Spot” is proposed, a hybrid environment between a park and public square. It integrates both main and secondary pathways of citizens’ daily rituals, significantly improves the microclimate of the area, and creates a transition between the park to the west and the actual market zone. Additional interventions in Zone 1 include unifying the paving into a single type of white pavement that harmonizes with existing buildings, improves the microclimate, and further defines the contour of the green “Spot.” A linear water feature is introduced to the area, and the chromatic language of the zone’s backbone is reinforced with large-scale vertical steel elements (“The Forest”), which serve as structures for seasonal shading, festive lighting, and parts of new children’s playgrounds in the area. The intervention in Zone 1 is completed by the introduction of a small number of strategically placed endemic trees and a number of natural artefacts like stone boulders.
In Zone 2, the large-scale urban intervention consists of a steel frame structure called “The Geometric Grid”. This structure spans the widest and most transitional part of Pazar Street, showcasing the characteristic regular geometric grid of the city and the zone. It manifests as urban furniture—a sunshade. The metal structure continues the chromatic and conceptual axis established by the paving in Zone 2. In keeping with the overall intervention, the concept for Zone 2 optimizes parking needs (especially for the residential building in the southern part) by moving parking into the width of the street lane, thereby freeing up the internal courtyard of the residential building and its rich greenery for recreation for residents, both adults and children.
In Zone 3, large-scale interventions along the pedestrian axis leading to the eastern park include carefully planned parking solutions (including underground parking), freeing up a square space for multifunctional use—recreation, festivals, and complementary market activities—and providing a new recognizable space for recreation and sports for local residents. This space also serves as a climate-friendly shading element for the square. The structure of the large-scale facility “The Playground” in Zone 3 adheres to the color scheme of the interventions and functions as the visual and conceptual center of Zone 3.
The contrasting pavements proposed at this stage of the project codify the identity of the axis and its three distinct zones. They visually highlight the diversity of existing buildings and allow for internal diversification within the paving of each zone: white pavement for Zone 1, medium gray for Zone 2, and anthracite for Zone 3. At the same time, the overall paving redesign of the area eliminates boundaries between street lanes and sidewalks, creating a “shared space” with a focus on pedestrian movement. The paving solution is based on environmental observations and allows for the recycling of construction materials, thereby having both ecological and economic benefits.
STAGES OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT PROPOSAL
Stage 1: Surveying Zone 1, clearing Zone 3 of parasitic commercial structures, implementing an underground parking lot in Zone 3, and paving and constructing the square in Zone 3.
Stage 2: Implementing the large-scale intervention “The Playground”, preparing and reinforcing Zone 1, and completing the paving in Zone 2, including new parking solutions.
Stage 3: Implementing the large-scale intervention in Zone 2 (“The Geometric Grid”), paving and hybrid park intervention “The Spot” in Zone 1, and installing urban furnishings in Zone 1, including vertical elements (“The Forest”), which can also be implemented dynamically over time.
Additionally, the project recommends surveying the ceiling slab of the underground parking lot in Zone 1 to ensure the safe and long-term use of the public spaces above it. It also offers scenarios for optimizing the use of the underground parking lot, which the municipality could propose to private owners as partners in shaping the urban spaces.