Winning design selected for 5km leisure trail on coast of Casablanca
Canadian architects Lemay have won an international competition to redesign the corniches of Morocco’s Casablanca coast and create a leisure-filled seaside promenade.
The contest was launched by real estate agency Casa Aménagement in June 2016, with the intention of prompting a design that can become “a landmark destination in Morocco.”
The project is intended to enhance a 5km stretch of Casablanca’s dramatic cliffside pathways and roads, creating “a layered sensory experience”. Lemay’s concept is based around three main functions – a festive event space, a seaside resort and a nature preserve – and includes rest areas, walkways, outdoor sports facilities and observation points.
Inspired by the classic and multi-tiered Islamic garden, a series of overlapping landscaped layers, irrigated using a grey-water waste system, will create a formal procession from the city to the sea. At street intersections, open public squares will act as gates to the sea and connect services such as restaurants, boutiques shops and underground parking.
Sustainable development strategies woven into the new urban design include provision for an electric tramway and the Casablanca coast’s first-ever bicycle path.
Work on the first phase of the project, a promenade along the Hassan II Mosque and the Ain Diab corniche, is set to begin imminently and could be completed this year. It will extend from the mosque, one of the capital’s best-known landmarks, as a walkway lined with attractions, water features and light elements.
The cost of the whole 5km project has been estimated at 200m Dirhams (US$19.4m, €18.4m, £15.8m). It is scheduled for completion by July 2018.
Lemay are collaborating with Moroccan firm Geodata, which specialises in topography and engineering.
Casablanca Morocco Lemay design landscape architectureDesign unveiled for Casablanca peace museum on site of terror attack
Foster + Partners' Four Seasons Casablanca has spa offering emerald and gold treatments
Casablanca plans aquarium development to entice tourists
GoCo Health Innovation City in Sweden plans to lead the world in delivering wellness and new science
Aman sister brand Janu debuts in Tokyo with four-floor urban wellness retreat
€38m geothermal spa and leisure centre to revitalise Croatian city of Bjelovar
Two Santani eco-friendly wellness resorts coming to Oman, partnered with Omran Group
Kerzner shows confidence in its Siro wellness hotel concept, revealing plans to open 100
Ritz-Carlton, Portland unveils skyline spa inspired by unfolding petals of a rose
Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners are just one of the names behind The Emory hotel London and Surrenne private members club
Peninsula Hot Springs unveils AUS$11.7m sister site in Australian outback
IWBI creates WELL for residential programme to inspire healthy living environments
Conrad Orlando unveils water-inspired spa oasis amid billion-dollar Evermore Resort complex
Studio A+ realises striking urban hot springs retreat in China's Shanxi Province
Populous reveals plans for major e-sports arena in Saudi Arabia
Wake The Tiger launches new 1,000sq m expansion
Othership CEO envisions its urban bathhouses in every city in North America
Merlin teams up with Hasbro and Lego to create Peppa Pig experiences
SHA Wellness unveils highly-anticipated Mexico outpost
One&Only One Za’abeel opens in Dubai featuring striking design by Nikken Sekkei
Luxury spa hotel, Calcot Manor, creates new Grain Store health club
'World's largest' indoor ski centre by 10 Design slated to open in 2025
Murrayshall Country Estate awarded planning permission for multi-million-pound spa and leisure centre
Aman's Janu hotel by Pelli Clarke & Partners will have 4,000sq m of wellness space
Therme Group confirms Incheon Golden Harbor location for South Korean wellbeing resort
Universal Studios eyes the UK for first European resort
King of Bhutan unveils masterplan for Mindfulness City, designed by BIG, Arup and Cistri
Rural locations are the next frontier for expansion for the health club sector
Tonik Associates designs new suburban model for high-end Third Space health and wellness club
Aman sister brand Janu launching in Tokyo in 2024 with design by Denniston's Jean-Michel Gathy
The Peninsula London unveils Peter Marino-designed spa inspired by London’s famous parks
First glimpses revealed of Mandarin Oriental, Mayfair's subterranean spa retreat
"Architecture is alive" says Ma Yansong, as Shenzhen art museum opens exhibition showcasing work of MAD Architects
Three years after Pegasus Capital bought Six Senses, how close is the private equity firm to realising its goals for its first spa and hospitality investment? Pegasus’ founder Craig Cogut tells us what’s been achieved and what comes next
Why shouldn’t sports facilities be beautiful? Across Asia, architects are creating landmark buildings for the public, discovers Christopher de Wolf
Ben Channon has written Happy by Design, a new book about how architecture affects our mental health. He explains how we can all be happier at home