The New Bogotá City Center will be designed by OMA.
OMA, the Rem Koolhaas-led architecture company, has won an international competition to design a 680-acre mixed-use civic center for Bogotá, Colombia, dubbed the “biggest institutional master-plan in Latin America in 50 years.”
A “curved, public space axis” connecting parks, government buildings, retail space, housing, offices, and a university is proposed by OMA. According to OMA, a green walk will connect the various districts on the sites along Calle 26 and the park would have “cultural attractions and a bike path that will continue to Bogota’s very popular pedestrian CicloVia network.” apartments for sale
“Our plan allows the Bogotá Centro Administrativo Nacional (CAN) to be a vibrant node by creating a continuous public domain that bends through the property to connect the park, the university, and Calle 26,” said Shohei Shigematsu, the project’s chief designer. “The arc establishes a distinctive urban identity while accommodating programmatic variation with a single motion.”
Bogotá is already well-known for its modern architecture and urban planning. Between 1947 and 1951, Le Corbusier designed the existing historic downtown center.
According to OMA’s literature, the current Bogotá project is the largest attempt to master-plan a public area in Latin America since Oscar Neimeyer’s Brasilia in the 1960s. The project will take up an area the size of Washington, D.C.’s National Mall.
More than 900,000 square meters of government office space and 600,000 square meters of residential space are included in the current design. Seventy-two acres of the 680-acre site are set aside for public open space, and the competition jury said, “The planned mix of uses supports continuous activity and supports the establishment of various districts.” “The project’s distinct urban face delivers a clear urban face, making it more institutionally and economically appealing.”
What is the World’s Most Livable City?
According to a sophisticated methodology devised by the Economist Magazine, Melbourne, Australia, is the most livable city in the world.
Melbourne beat out Vienna and Vancouver, the perennial champion, owing to its superior infrastructure. The city also received high rankings in the areas of health care and education.
Australia and Canada account for eight of the top ten cities. There were no American cities in the top ten.
According to the research, “those that score highest tend to be mid-sized cities in affluent countries with a relatively low population density.” “This can encourage a variety of recreational activities without resulting in increased crime or overwhelmed infrastructure.”
The well publicized study ranks several “lifestyle problems” in 140 cities. Every city is given a “rating of relative comfort” based on 30 characteristics divided into five groups: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.
The Economist acknowledges that the livability quotient doesn’t alter much from year to year. Civil instability, which can send a city like Damascus tumbling, is the most important element pushing cities up and down the annual chart.
As violence decreased, other cities rose in the rankings. Due to a decrease in the threat of terrorism, murder, and kidnappings, Bogota, Colombia, climbed to number 111 on the list. (“Dubai’s livability score increases,” the Khaleej Times said after Dubai climbed to 77th place on the list, the list’s third-largest jump.)
Tehran, Iran, came in last in the rankings, followed by Douala, Cameroon, and Tripoli, Libya.
