This action will reinforce the use for the city of the sheds and the adjoining area with new activities for the enjoyment of residents and tourists
València, 27th July 2021 – The Port of Gandia continues to take firm steps so that its residents can enjoy an open area, close and integrated into the city. An area to showcase its gastronomy, culture, crafts in a port that will act as a dynamiser of the economy and will be a tourist showcase. This challenge set by the Advisory Committee of the port of Gandía, a body promoted by the Port Authority of Valencia and chaired by the local Council, is closer and aims to enhance the value of the sheds and the adjoining area, proposing actions and activities capable of revitalising the area, respecting the fishing use and opening up its participation to the public.
The Port Authority of Valencia (APV) has published the call for ideas for the integration of the non-commercial areas of the service area of the Port of Gandia for an amount of 40,000 euros. Specifically, the scope of action is concentrated in two areas, one of them between the fruit sheds from 5 to 17, and the space located between its southern façade and the limit of the commercial port area, and between the northern façade and the quay. The other area includes the Lonja building and square, and the platform to the south of the Sant Nicolau church.
“The Port Authority of Valencia and Gandia City Council have always been in good harmony and this tender is the result of this joint work, also with the Port-city commission. The purpose of this ideas competition is to dynamise the Port, to improve the Port-city connection infrastructure between Gandía and its port, and to look for a friendly solution for the citizens. We want to enhance the value of the southern area with the fruit sheds, improving the connection with the urban area and above all with the northern area. We will be open to the projects that are presented to us and we will choose the one that is most interesting for the city and the citizens”, explains Aurelio Martínez, president of the APV.
Objectives of the competition
For zone 1 of the action, the main aim is to enhance the value of the sheds and the area annexed to the south of these by proposing actions and activities that are capable of making the area more dynamic and integrating it pedestrianised through Juan de la Cierva street with the urban continuum that borders this area of the Port.
With regard to the area between the sheds and the breakwater, any proposal must respect the fishing use and be limited to approaches that do not affect the safety of this use or limit and enhance its value. When proposing uses for the sheds, three of them should be earmarked for the Research Centre currently managed by the Universitat Politècnica de València in the port and consideration should also be given to the possibility of sheds 16 and 17, or just one of them, being earmarked for boarding facilities for the ferry to the Balearic Islands.
With regard to zone 2, the objectives of the competition are to promote the public use of the Lonja square and to provide an attractive pedestrian link between the square and zone 1. All the proposals must be capable of maintaining compatibility between the activity associated with fishing and the public use of the spaces, also aiming to enhance the value of the fishing use. To this end, the Fishermen’s Guild will be informed of the proposals.
The main objective of the area around the church of Sant Nicolau is to design a riverside promenade to link the area of the north quay with Carrer Riu and Plaça de la Lonja on the south quay. A perimeter communication solution should be proposed for public use on the south side and on the east side of the church of Sant Nicolau, including the crossing of the existing irrigation channel. The proposals submitted for this area must improve and integrate the buildings in it with their surroundings, taking into account the proposal to declare the church of Sant Nicolau a BIC.
The competition also contemplates a technically, operationally and economically viable solution to connect the North Quay and the southern façade of the dock. This connection must also have a dual function: public pedestrian use with free access and the possibility of circulation of motorised vehicles (in no case cars) used by the Port Police and APV personnel for surveillance and control functions in the service area.