Location: PUBLIC PARK, ZIELONA GÓRA, PL
AREA: 9.4 HA. STATUS: IN PROGRESS\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\r\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\nMillennium Park in Zielona Góra until the 1960s functioned as the Green Cross cemetery. Then it was transformed into a public park, but the memory of the place prevented the local people from using the space freely and without superstitions. The Millennium Park was left abandoned despite its location in the city centre, near the main boulevard. The condition of the park is not inviting either. Upper branches of trees let hardly any light inside the park, ground level lacks lower greenery – that is why the park seems to be dark and dangerous. Main idea was to bring back life into Millennium Park by carefully listening to the postulates of a local community and eliminate spatial obstacles preventing the park from becoming an unique, multi-functional public space. Designers behaved as mediators, rendering the needs and wishes of potential users. The manual of those was provided in a report called ‘Social vision of Millennium Park’, prepared by Salony Foundation and BWA Zielona Góra. Architects’ conclusions from the report were followed by a series of public consulting sessions throughout the whole process of designing and delivering a revitalization project. The design is not a fixed project, but an open system, which can be developed and transformed within the scheme in the prolonged time-frame. Basic rules were established to structure the park, emphasize its characteristic features and provide the city with sustainable, multi-functional public space for different users, that benefit from the space without any conflicts of interest. Nowadays the park is cut by an overlapping maze of mostly unused and faded footpaths. The project reduces existing paths and transforms them into functional network. Communication is organized with the following elements: grand pedestrian & bike loop, which allow fast commuting along the borders of the park; characteristic entrance gates to the park; longitudinal boulevard and transversal paths; strolling loops of differentiated functions and themes.Strolling loops group functions which differ in their character and target profile of future users. The abstract loop is sensorial zone, which could be explored intuitively. Zone dedicated to integration of the local community with integrated communication axis going through the Park is called the Local Community/Transit Loop. The active recreation loop defines a sport zone surrounded by lush greenery. Wandering/Sense-Stimulating Loop contains all the characteristic features of Millennium Park (terraces, historic greenery arrangements). New functions inside the park are cliché of urban public spaces’ functions, modified and transformed into spontaneous and casual format of Millennium Park. Spaces in-between functional loops are filled with rows of trailing plants or low bushes. Plants inscribe multi-layered history of the park- they mark the terraces’ borders and emphasize a historical arrangement of pathways. After some time, plants will go off the given tracks, forming green carpet covering the park. The revitalization project of Millennium Park leaves the site as multi-threaded space dedicated to differentiated users. Millennium Park becomes public space in the city center of Zielona Góra, with characteristics and qualities of lush green forests surrounding the city.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\r\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\nThe revitalization project was based on a report ‚Social concept for land use of Millennium Park’, prepared by Salony Foundation and BWA Zielona Góra with support of Zielona Góra City Council in 2012.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\r\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\n\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\r\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\n
