“In slippers” to the city bath or how to expand the network of pedestrian spaces in Varna

Location of the public territory: Stefan Stambolov Str. – the section between Knyaz Boris I Blvd. and the Central Bath – a branch of the pedestrian street.

Current condition: The space has attractive ground floor rooms, restaurants, shops and workshops. The street is picturesque, shady and well landscaped. Viewed from Knyaz Boris I Blvd., it descends steeply, stopping in the dome of the central bathroom. This part of the street is home to a small number of parking spaces and restricting them would free up valuable space for use by citizens and local businesses without disrupting urban mobility.

Project idea: To expand the network of pedestrian areas in Varna. To limit / reduce the parking in the section of Stefan Stambolov Street – between Knyaz Boris I Blvd. and the Central Bath. To improve the pavement and landscaping. Add lighting and seating options. To enable the street space to be actively used by citizens, and the owners of the local business to benefit from the active connection of the street with the ground spaces.

About the author: Architect Maxim Nedkov was born in 1989 in the city of Varna. In 2008 he left for Munich and in 2014 he graduated as an architect at the Technical University of Munich. As a student he worked in the Department of Load-bearing Structures under Prof. Rainer Bartel and in the architectural office “Lance Architect”. In 2014 he started working as an architect in the design bureau “Lanz Architect”, under the project BWM Classic. In 2016 he returned to Varna and worked as a technical manager. Since 2017 he has been a freelance architect. Contact: maxi_m@abv.bg.

We are also waiting for your suggestions for the initiative “What does EcoVarna look like” at e-mail: ecovarna.info@gmail.com.

Projects must:

– to ensure a balance between natural and anthropogenic factors and to create preconditions for sustainable development of Varna;

– to contain a short explanatory part about the location of the public territory, its current state and vision for its future development;

– to be accompanied by a visualization – a photo of the current state of the place and a color sketch, a diagram of the future;

– be accompanied by a short CV of the author;

The projects will be published in the section “News”, category “Ecocity”, on the site ecovarna.info (after its update). After the completion of the initiative (until the collection of 12 project ideas) they will be submitted to the Union of Architects – Varna. All 12 ideas of “What EcoVarna looks like” will be presented in an official exhibition during the civic forum “Conference on Democracy 2021”, which is held annually on the last Saturday of February.

What EcoVarna Looks Like is part of the Active for Public Spaces initiative.

Translator: Valentina Vagge