Holcim Awards Acknowledgement winner from 2011 “Urban precinct reconstruction and rehabilitation” for Place Lalla Yeddouna in Fez, Morocco has won the Cultural Regeneration category of this year’s MIPIM Architectural Review Future Project Awards. The project was developed by London-based Mossessian & Partners, in collaboration with local architect Yassir Khalil of Casablanca.

The winners of the 3rd International Holcim Awards competition for sustainable construction projects and visions from Africa Middle East have been announced at a ceremony in Casablanca. A total of USD 300,000 was presented to ten outstanding projects submitted by architects, planners, engineers and project owners. The winning projects illustrate the broad scope of applying sustainable approaches in construction including school infrastructure, community renewal, urban redevelopment, and energy-efficient design.

The jury recognizes that the transformation of this unique yet particularly neglected site on the banks of Fez River will not only contribute to the built environment but will also improve the poor labor and economic conditions of the native copperplate and leatherworks artisans that dominate the site. It is expected that the improvement of this site will become a catalyst for the development of surrounding areas with positive social impact that will not end at the site’s boundaries.

The underlying goal of the Place Lalla Yeddouna project is to revitalize an historic hub in the urban structure of Fez’s UNESCO World Heritage medina (old town) with new constructions and cautious conservation of valuable historic buildings. The urban design embraces the previously negated river and renders it a determining urban element offering space along the river for social interaction. The place itself and its surroundings are woven into the urban fabric through well-composed sequences of open spaces.