Through protection, restoration, and participation of the water sources in daily life, the project aims to develop a design scheme that is based on the waterline(s), shaping Tuzla’s natural landscape and lifestyle while connecting it to its historical and cultural roots. Following the route of Tuzla’s Umur Stream and harmonizing green patches between the lake and the sea, the project establishes a looping framework that defines the urban, ecological and infrastructural design to reconnect the city and the ecosystem through careful interventions. 

Elements include 8.9km of cycleways, conversion of 11,000 square meters of pathway surface from asphalt to a permeable green surface, together with habitat restoration, runoff water filtering via bioswales, and creating nesting areas for fauna. Discovering non-invasive socio-ecological encounters, it aims to develop socio-cultural density without being necessarily urban, and envisions to provide a mutually harmonized common habitat balancing human use, ecological processes and natural preservation.

The first landscape plantings were conducted in 2024, and within one year there has been a noticeable return of bees, butterflies and birds to the area as the waterways are uncovered and the site begins to be restored.

Project status: Under construction (commenced June 2022).

Meet Openact Architecture, one of the visionary emerging practices behind the Tuzla Stream Co-habitat project, which earned them a Holcim Foundation Award in 2023. We had the chance to sit down with architects Carlos Zarco Sanz and Zuhal Kol, whose base is between Istanbul and Madrid, for an exclusive interview in our Words with Winners series. They shared the story behind their incredible urban regeneration project in Tuzla, Istanbul – an area that transformed from an agricultural town to an industrial hub.

Their transformative landscape project reweaves the natural and urban fabric of Tuzla, integrating water and creating a green corridor along the Umur Stream. By harmonizing green patches between an inland lake and the sea, it establishes a looping framework that defines urban, ecological, and infrastructural design, reconnecting the city with its natural surroundings.

The project was recognized for standing as a transformative force within this region, grappling with the challenges posed by rapid urbanization and industrialization. The jurors were deeply struck by the comprehensive and meticulously crafted nature of the project that emerges as a complete ecosystem of regeneration, seamlessly integrating a scheme for revitalization, a dynamic program layout, and a deeply engaged community framework. The approach used to restore Tuzla’s dynamic identity through a profound reverence for “water” as a shared heritage of both nature and humanity, was highly regarded. The jury applauded how narrative threads of this heritage are meticulously traced through a vibrant ecological belt, an innovative circulatory loop, and a socially dynamic network. Central to the project’s essence is the incorporation of co-design participatory processes, which was particularly appreciated. This inclusive approach led to a diverse influx of feedback from the local community, which was  recognized as crucial for the project’s success. 

Additionally, the jury commended the exceptional level of detail of the proposal encompassing a number of elements from landscape architecture and water management to mobility infrastructure and public amenities. Overall, the project’s impact transcends its blueprint, emerging as a beacon of transformation within a region marred by challenges. Its embrace of co-design, meticulous attention to various facets, and its restorative approach to land all combine to signify its remarkable potential in revitalizing the local ecosystem and nurturing vibrant, sustainable communities.