Co(Vai) Urban Design Competition

The core to a vibrant city is its social space enkindling interactions. It is vital to create such spaces in the city neighbourhoods where people feel safe and happy to socialize. At the locus of cities being at the verge of unchecked urbanization and climatic change, it is immensely important to reinstate the connection between human and nature, both physically and psychologically. Thereby, through the design “Tharu Tharum Vannangal’, the spaces are reimagined to be revolving around trees and natural spaces.

Coimbatore as a city has had a steady importance historically and has been an important city under the Cheras, Cholas, Pandyas, Madurai sultanates, Hoysalas, the Vijayanagar empire right up to the British colonial times. Koudampalayam, although a part of this historic city with a vibrant history, diverse heritage and architecture, has a missing sense of identity and lack of spaces that create more interactions between communities. To create an environment that is a careful mix of art, culture and foliage, is the crux of our vision for the neighbourhood. A collaboration of the existing infrastructure and existing built environment, this design framework aims to incorporate elements that can be categorised under five major catalysts that would act as a driver for integrated and sustainable development plan

The Idea

Green
A prudent use of blue-green infrastructure such as urban forest, stream rejuvenation programme, urban farming, bioswales, ground water recharging techniques and water retention ponds, as an integral part of the overall design system to sustain the ‘green-ness’ of the neighborhood throughout the year and make it self-sustaining.
Incorporating afforestation within the design system such that it bends with the existing urban fabric and is utilized to create a better environment for the neighborhood.

Vibrant
Art as a medium to create identity for the place that is a considerably new development. It acts as a means to enhance community participation, community identity, ownership of the living environment by the residing communities, interactions between various parts of the overall site.
Creating spaces that activate the public realm and positively impacts the neighborhood both physically and psychologically.

Sociable
Place making through small interventions, that enable creation of spaces along the streets as well as creation of spaces that helps interactions between different parts of the site.
Incorporating traditional concepts of thinnai, gathering spaces with a tree as a focal point and so on, as planning concepts to keep the overall design rooted to the context while providing spaces that are sociable and relatable to the residing communities.

Accessible
With an outlook for non-motorized or minimum motorized mobility systems, in the master plan level, frameworks for shuttle services, and infrastructure dedicated to cycles and electric bikes have been carefully incorporated.
In view of increasing the accessibility of various spaces within the site, small interventions by means of walkways, pedestrian plazas, and connector green spaces have been introduced.

Inclusive
For all the frameworks and systems to function, a strong stakeholder participation and a multi-disciplinary approach is essential.
With timely engagement of specialist organizations, and active participation of local communities in the process, the area will gain identity, give opportunities and a sense of ownership to its inhabitants to constantly work towards maintaining and sustenance of the visualized plan and framework.

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