ON LOCATION
de Portugal, Huerta de la Partida, Jardines de Puente de Segovia, Jardines de Puente de Toledo, Jardines de la Virgen del Puerto and the Parque de la Arganzuela. Programmatically, the Madrid Rio project includes parks, squares, play areas, boulevards, cultural hubs, sports facilities, entertainment hubs and 11 new bridges to improve the connections between the city’s central and south western districts especially for pedestrians and cyclists. The Arganzuela park which has a dominant theme of water also incorporates 3 elliptical shallow ponds with pop jet fountains to provide respite from the summer heat for adults and kids alike. This particular design element can be attributed to the 3525 children who participated in the Madrid Rio drawing competition and drew imageries of a beach in an otherwise landlocked Madrid. The project also involved the restoration of historical monuments such as the El Rey bridge, the Segovia bridge and the Toledo bridge all of which now stand highlighted in the midst of landscaped surroundings. A former slaughterhouse, Matadero, has also been restored and converted to an arts and cultural centre with an area of nearly 150,000 square metres.
CITY OBSERVER | December 2018
PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS Location: Invited competition: Design & realization: Client: Project team:
Project management: Programme:
Site surface: Construction cost:
Madrid, Spain 2005 2006- 2011 Madrid City Government West 8 Urban Design & Landscape Architecture and MRIO arquitectos (a consortium of 3 Madrid-based firms namely Burgos & Garrido Arquitectos Asociados, Porras La Casta Arquitectos and Rubio & ÁlvarezSala) Ginés Garrido Colomero Parks, squares, boulevards, cultural hubs, sports facilities, entertainment hubs and bridges 7 square kilometres ~ 420 million Euro