2019 Sopor Masterplan, Cluj-Napoca

The competition promoter is the Cluj-Napoca Municipality, the future initiator of the urban planning documentation to be contracted as a result of this competition

The competition organising entity is Ordinul Arhitecților din România, through its Transylvania Regional Branch, in partnership with Ordinul Arhitecților din România.

“In the past jobs were about muscles, now they’re about brains, but in future they’ll be about the heart”

– Minouche Shafik, London School of Economics and Political Science Director.

How does a residential area designed for its future inhabitants in a world where, in economy, besides the GDP (Gross Domestic Product), life quality indicators will be important? It will definitely be a city that considers the human sensitivity and condition, the human with a healthy lifestyle, aware that its entire activity takes resources away from nature and that, thus, living in harmony with nature is a must. We are thinking about the current generation and, most importantly, about the generations of the next 30 years. We expect a city built more for people than for cars, with pedestrian or bicycle access to most of the day-to-day functions, a city well connected to the existing urban areas, especially by public transport. To encourage walking, the public spaces shall be attractive, as well as cool in the summer. Thus, the vegetation and the greenery network, connected to the existing ones, shall contribute greatly to the real estate plus-value.

Sopor is an area within the buildable territory of Cluj-Napoca, with various sizes of land plots, privately owned. The area was subject to previous studies, partially, and Urban Zoning plans were compiled for certain areas, but such a fragmented implementation cannot ensure a structured, harmonious and durable development.

The Cluj-Napoca Municipality wants to ensure a durable city development in the 21st century, aiming at providing a high quality of life to the current and future inhabitants (housing diversity, balanced functionality, adequate infrastructure, a balanced relationship with nature, etc.).

Although the lands for the future Sopor Residential Area are privately owned, the local authority wants this new development, structured in compliance with contemporary, sustainable principles, to become an urbanisation example, where public and private initiatives cooperate in all inhabitants’ best interest.

COMPETITION AIM

The Design competition aims at selecting the best solution for “Compiling a MASTERPLAN/Urban Zoning Plan for the Coloniile Sopor residential area of Cluj-Napoca”.

The competition wishes to identify a new, sustainable urbanisation method, oriented towards the future generations and good cohabitation. The objective is to enhance the people’s quality of life in the urban environment, using integrative and innovative solutions.

The Municipality of Cluj-Napoca provides the funding for the new urban planning: from the design solutions competition to compiling the Urban Zoning Plan and the building phases for the infrastructure and public facilities.

The proposed urbanisation will increase the private real estate value in the area, via a rational use of the land, urbanistic coherence, solutions for increased quality of life and of proximity cohesion.

The private investors will also have access to new investment opportunities and plus value through urbanistic innovation, provided a collaboration between the 3 main urban actors exists:

• land owners
• real estate developers
• local a public authority

The participants are invited to submit, in this competition, not only a spatial development vision for the area, but also a strategy, so that the new development becomes a structured, “step-by-step”, sustainable housing environment which will also provide sufficient flexibility for the private developers wishing to build.

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The documentation for Sopor Masterplan Design Competition is presented on OAR Concursuri website in its final form, integrating the changes operated in conformity with the clarifications published in ESPP on 19.06.2019, 4.07.2019, 16.07.2019 and 17.07.2019.