Thessaloniki Port Business Hub
International Competition, 2020
with @arigatoestudio

The new development at the Thessaloniki Port waterfront is a mixed-use hub integrating business and commercial areas, housing units, public facilities, parking infrastructure and large-scale storage space, making it a logistical pole in between industrial and high-density residential areas.

The proposal seeks to take advantage of the scale of the development to create a monument of sorts, a new local identity while remaining connected to a broader global network. Rather than acting merely as containers for the required program, the buildings are envisioned as large-scale, multipurpose structures whose porous and adaptable character can be appropriated by their users over time.

Instead of proposing a conventional scheme, the project elevates the main office towers above four podium buildings ranging from five to seven storeys in height, accommodating a mixed-use program of parking and office spaces. The ground floor remains compact and open, crossed by a series of large-scale pathways connecting the new public spaces of Thessaloniki Port. The building envelope is designed to be gradually colonized by selected native plant species, contributing to the ecological diversity of the area.