Pathologies of the Riverside Built Environment Versus Success Indicators of Functional Performance

The diagnostic technique of functional performance, defined as a set of measures determining the effectiveness, efficiency and durability of the proposed goal, has been successfully applied in the city of Gdańsk. The most degraded downtown area in this city was the Granary Island (Wyspa Spichrzów). This is a historic site of a great significance to the city as the first granaries of the Main City were built there around 1330. The heavily-degraded island has been subjected to thorough regeneration in recent years.

Architectural designs of the new buildings on the island were brought up in broad debate on how such building development should be reconstructed or replicated. At present, the second stage of the regeneration of the Granary Island (Wyspa Spichrzów) is being implemented. The most interesting and the most visible object on the island is a former granary called Daleka Droga (Long Way Granary) (Fig. 2). In 2013, there were only fragments of its outer walls, which had to be secured during the regeneration of the River Motława waterfronts around the island. In 2016, a design of the reconstruction of the granary and the construction of new modern buildings in the closest vicinity was presented. Nowadays, the complex serves the purpose of the hotel [9]. Functional performance manifests itself here as the ability to transform the built environment to satisfy the stakeholders' needs. It can be stated that the above-mentioned expectations were met and the regeneration of the previously pathological environment was successful even before it was completed.

Figure 2

Gdańsk is an extraordinary city, also thanks to its strong connection with the cities of Gdynia and Sopot. The above-mentioned cities form the so-called “Tri-city”. In the city of Gdynia, which is as big as Gdańsk, there are currently major transformations in downtown waterfront areas. Such changes include the construction of Sea Towers in 2009 and a residential complex Yacht Park built in 2020. Due to the fact that they are seashore investments, they were not taken into consideration or elaborated on as the paper focuses on the riverside built environment and accompanying objects.

In the city of Szczecin, the areas located on the riverside embankments of the River Odra, the second longest river in Poland, such as: Chrobry Boulevard (Bulwar Chrobrego), Piastowski Boulevard (Bulwar Piastowski) and the Sailors' Avenue (Aleja Żeglarzy) are worth paying attention. The first of the abovementioned riverside embankments, namely Chrobry Boulevard, still awaits regeneration. On the other hand, Piastowski Boulevard (Fig. 3) is a new riverside investment of the Szczecin authorities. The whole project has been a success and enjoys great popularity [10]. The enterprise has popularized the waterfront as a nice walking area among Szczecin inhabitants and tourists alike. Adequate lighting makes it possible to walk along the promenade also at dusk. Along the whole length of the riverside boulevards there is a paved walking route equipped with benches. There is also a cycling path. The whole area is accessible to the disabled. Piastowski Boulevard is approximately 900 metres long, with many bistros, restaurants and cafes located along it. In addition, the Sailors' Avenue (Aleja Żeglarzy) on the riverside embankment (within Piastowski Boulevard) reminds the passers-by of major sea expeditions and voyages. The creation of additional attractions on the empty riverside promenades contributes to the realization of goals connected with functional performance. This time, however, it is not a mere satisfaction of the stakeholders' needs, but the anticipation of the local community's needs and the desire to commemorate local history.

Figure 3

The capital of Poland, Warsaw, also has interesting riverside embankments in its downtown area, along the street called Kościuszkowskie Riverside (Wybrzeże Kościuszkowskie). In 2010, the Copernicus Science Centre (Centrum Nauki Kopernik) (Fig. 4) was opened on the site just in front of the former Powiśle Power Plant (towards the River Vistula (Wisła)). The new building broke the alignment of the building development in this fragment of the riverside embankment. The street of Kościuszkowskie Riverside was concealed underneath the new object and under a part of the embankment. That concept made it possible to avoid collisions of pedestrians and cyclists with vehicles travelling on the road of high traffic capacity. In addition, the city was drawn closer to the river, which was cut off from the city by a dual carriageway “Wisłostrada” in the 1970s. The design of the Copernicus Science Centre by Jan Kubec, the founder of the RAr-2 Laboratory of Architecture (RAr-2 Laboratorium Architektury), was based on a landscape approach. The architect spoke of the assumptions of his design studio in the following way: “we make very conscious decisions as regards the choice of designing projects, both at home and abroad; we choose such projects in which we could meet the challenge of the subject of the utmost interest to us, namely the landscape, the waterfront (where land meets water) and the public space” [12].

Figure 4

The design of the Copernicus Science Centre (Centrum Nauki Kopernik) obtained numerous awards. Until July 2017, it was visited by over 7 million visitors [13]. The creation of this type of a building proves how big an impact may be exerted on the built environment by the proper implementation of a well-designed space into urban landscape. As far as functional performance is concerned, the alignment of the existing building development was broken by shaping the object in the form of eroded boulders, which seem to blend with the surroundings. In this case, the actionable solution to the problem, namely the building of the Science Centre along with its surroundings, contributes to the effective durability of the purpose, i.e. the reinforcement of the quality of the usable urban space.

The area worth paying attention to in Cracow is the waterfront located on the opposite riverbank in relation to the Old Town and the Royal Castle, namely the district of Ludwinów – Podwawelskie Housing Estate (Osiedle Podwawelskie). This area features a degraded building of the former ‘Forum’ Hotel, which in the 1990s was one of the most modern and most computerized, four-star hotels in Europe (Fig. 5). The system of reservation and service was based on American NCR computers. Hotel guests had at their disposal the following facilities: a swimming pool, saunas, SPA, a solarium, a tennis court, two restaurants and several conference rooms. However, the hotel was closed down in 2002 due to the soaking of the foundations and flooding of the basements and garages as a result of a structural failure [15]. Since that time, the building has been deserted and the surroundings have been gradually deteriorating. The building has changed its owners, but the height of its storeys is too low, according to modern building standards, to once again accommodate hotel rooms there. In 2010, architects were looking for a solution how to protect the building of the Forum Hotel against demolition. The battle for the preservation of this building has been fought by the aficionados of the contemporary architecture of Kraków (Cracow) for quite a few years now and has produced some interesting solutions recently [16].

Figure 5

The former hotel building is inundated with social initiatives. The building is now covered with the largest billboard in Poland and has become a hipster and fashionable place recently. The building houses the Forum of Spaces (Forum Przestrzenie). Next to the building there is, among other things: a hot-air balloon (providing viewing experience), a whotel (hotel on water) [17], an amusement park, a beach, restaurant barges, a vast green riverside area suitable for walking and a view of the Royal Castle on the Wawel Hill (Zamek Królewski na Wawelu) on the opposite riverbank of the River Vistula (Wisła). There are many events organized in the closest vicinity of the Forum Hotel, such as concerts, exhibitions, food trucks rallies, fairs, markets, festivals and even open-air cinema in the summer [15]. In the city of Szczecin, the waterfront boulevards were filled with pre-designed attractions. On the other hand, in Cracow, the surroundings of the Forum Hotel have become fashionable. The area is attracting bigger and bigger crowds and the very object, in spite of its ugliness, has become the icon of this place. The Historic Preservation Officer of the Małopolska region has justly remarked that, currently, on the Vistula riverside embankments – chaos prevails in this particular area [17]. However, such a municipal phenomenon should be seriously taken into consideration as it features hybrid urbanism due to the fact that more and more users of this space download into the Internet (by means of their smartphones) a multitude of photos with the description: #forum #kraków (cracow) #przestrzenie (spaces), etc.

Similarly to the city of Gdańsk, in the city of Wrocław the attention was paid to an island; this time the Słodowa Island (Malt Island). After the Second World War, the Słodowa Island was a place of leisure [18], especially liked by the youth. In the 1990s, the area was tidied up and provided with walking paths. At present, the island plays a function of a recreational place, mainly for the youth and students who like having barbecues there. In addition, the city organizes some open-air events on the island. In 2018, restoration of the only major building on the island began. The object in question was a historic town house located on the Słodowa Island (Fig. 6). Initially, local activists wanted to take it over and create a venue for social and artistic activities. However, the building was sold by the city to Pro Design company from Poznań.

Figure 6

Over a period of one year and a half, the object was expanded, creating thus a new place for local business. The requirements of the tender stated that the building, apart from business activity, should also include cultural, social and gastronomic functions [19]. The new object, called Concordia Design, was designed by architectural studio MVRDV in 2021 and was awarded the title of the “Building of the Year” in a contest organized by the international architectural portal ArchDaily. The investment was deemed the best in the world in the category ‘offices’ [20]. The design studio decided to partially restore and expand the 19^th century town house as well as adapt the building to contemporary needs, which is the most desirable designing solution in terms of functional performance. What distinguishes this building from other objects is a huge open terrace with a view over Wrocław. Moreover, the present-day built environment on the Słodowa Island, along with its flagship object of Concordia Design, is simply besieged with young people.

Following the period of two World Wars, Polish cities witnessed the implementation of many extraordinary investments. The cities destroyed in the war became places where ambitious engineers and architects could spread their wings. The city of Poznań had been regularly flooded for centuries, that is why in the 1960s the municipal authorities decided to implement controversial plans of filling in the existing channel of the River Warta. Such plans had existed since the beginning of the 20th century, when Poznań was under Prussian partition. However, it was not until 1964 that the filling-in works began on the Chwaliszewskie river bend and the dredging of the “relief” channel between the area of Chwaliszewo and the OstrówTumski Island was carried out [21].

In 2012, an idea came up that the old channel of the River Warta should be excavated. This is how the whole process was imagined: “Dumper trucks taking away thousands tonnes of soil, ubiquitous diggers and dozens of people committed to the formation and reinforcement of the riverbanks. (...) First, a channel of a depth of 8 metres should be dug on the site of the river bend. Why so deep? Because that is the exact difference between the river bed and the crown of the floodbanks” [22]. A year later, however, a different concept saw light. The design studio “1050 Pracownia Architektury” designed a park called the River Warta Old Channel Park (Park Stare Koryto Warty) (Fig. 7). Since 1908, this area has bordered on the former, no-longer-used Old Gasworks (Stara Gazownia – located on the former Grobla Island on the River Warta). The architects working for the design studio 1050 Pracownia Architektury designed the building of New Gasworks, called currently the Pavilion [23]. This object gave the park a cultural character, whereas the square, being an entrance zone to the park, provided space for holding exhibitions, happenings and artistic events. The former floodbank was adapted and became an amphitheatre with the panorama of Poznań old town in the background. A bicycle route running over the former filled-in river channel was connected with the bicycle route running along the River Warta, called the River Warta “Highway” (“Wartostrada”). The architects designed also some roofing from the side of “Wartostrada”, which provides protection in case of bad weather. The park features many groves, a meadow with flowers, a fountain, a children's playground and gym equipment. All of this, in accordance with the idea of functional performance, has a positive influence on the living environment. In addition, a radical decision of filling in the old river channel protected local residents from regular flooding.

Figure 7

To conclude, repair actions in the selected voivodeship capital cities contribute to the appearance of some indicators of success, which are directly linked to the imperative of sustainable development:

Economic indicator: Gdańsk – regeneration of Granary Island (Wyspa Spichrzów) caused the influx of stakeholders with their own capital, increased the number of tourists and visitors using new hotels and gastronomic establishments as well as stimulated local yacht navigation; Wrocław – the building of Concordia Design, which was awarded the title of the Building of the Year 2021 in the “office” category, has attracted new users to the meeting and conference zone, causing thus a bigger interest in the island in students and other young people;

One of the measurable advantages of the ecosystem services of rivers is supply services. As it is in the case of sustainable development aspects, they directly refer to economic benefits, for instance: creation of new business capabilities, an increase in the real estates value, provision of renewable energy as well as water transport and supply of water. As far as economic and tourism factors are concerned, municipal authorities are trying, in various ways, to attract, visitors, workers and investors. For instance, the city of Las Vegas is known as the entertainment city, Paris enjoys a reputation of a refined and sophisticated place, whereas Berlin an artistic one. A very good example of creating an ‘urban brand’ is the city of Bilbao in northern Spain. By building completely new, iconic, architectural objects, the city has attracted crowds of tourists and, what is more, new residents. One of the first objects constructed there was the Guggenheim Museum, situated on the River Bilbao's estuary. The building has attracted a massive number of people to this urban waterfront. In Poland, new buildings of large cubature are rarely and cautiously built in the waterfront areas. However, there are some examples in the above-mentioned voivodeship capital cities, where some activities in the scope of the built environment may be considered to be economic indicators concurring with the supply services of rivers in downtown areas (Table 3).

Rivers flowing through cities are something more than just enclaves of greenery located in unregulated river sections (Table 4). Ecosystem services provided by rivers include also regulating services: flood buffering, regulation of air and soil quality by ecosystems, protection against diseases, sewage treatment, retention, a decrease in pollution and disposal of the excess of nutrients from the waters. Similar issues are mentioned in the ecological aspect of the sustainable development: protection of natural resources, a decrease in CO₂ emissions, a small environmental footprint, application of local materials including recycled materials. For instance, grouped areas of urban greenery contribute to a decrease in temperature and thus reduce heat islands. Revitalized and renaturalized rivers and reservoirs improve the protection against the erosion of soil and flooding.

Ecosystem services of water flows also encompass cultural services of rivers, which bring immaterial benefits, through the human contact with nature: spiritual and cognitive development, reflection, recreation, aesthetic experiences, immaterial benefits, non-consumption use. For instance, the reinforcement of community cohesiveness is a cultural service obtained as a result of an increase in visual qualities and attractiveness of the living environment, provision of open spaces serving different purposes, greater accessibility of the river, protection of the cultural heritage of canals, locks and adjacent buildings, recreation on land and water along with an increased public security.

The above-listed issues are in concurrence with the social aspect of the imperative of sustainable development, which emphasizes the importance of health and user-friendly surroundings. A question concerning the formation of community bonds was posed earlier in this article. How to establish social bonds within waterfront building development if, usually, such places serve the purpose of only walking, circulation and traffic services? It was illustrated earlier in the article by the examples of Polish cities where some spaces can be deemed local centres. In accordance with the conclusions drawn on the basis of spatial analyses and activists' opinions contained in the “Conceptual Study of the Local Centres in Warsaw” (Studium koncepcyjnym dotyczącym centrów lokalnych w Warszawie) [32], it can be stated that urban local centres: include an element of commonly accessible public space; are multi-functional (with the exchangeability of functions depending on the season of the year or the time of the day); are located in the vicinity of the place of residence (a walking distance of 10–15 minutes); serve the purpose of commercial, intellectual and social exchange; offer programme for various age and community groups; connect and unite people, establish bonds and build local community; have a pleasant and beautiful urbanistic form, unique character, which form local identity. The above-mentioned features are worth reinforcing not only within urban local centres, but also in the water-front areas (Table 5).