Ministries and Public Institutions
Vision for a unified ministry
Project description
The Ministries and Public Institutions project aimed at presenting a new image of the Lebanese public sector, which suffered from the lack of development in the twenty-year post-war era. With this project, new optimally-sized modular office buildings were to replace the old rented public buildings, unsuitable for office space and inadequate in capacity.
Three publicly-owned sites were identified by the Lebanese government to use for the relocation of higher-rent ministries and institutions. The project would be financially viable as well through the resulting savings in rental, sufficient to fund the project over nine to twenty years depending on which ministry is being considered. The master plan of the Ministries and Public Institutions development establishes landscape propositions served with adequate parking facilities, with the added attention of locating related institutions one next to the other.
The master plan of the Jeddah New Central District was developed based on a 45-hectare prototype district, centered around the multiple residential, commercial, catering and entertainment facilities. The allocated plot for the project was the abandoned 130-hectare site of the old airport located southeast of the city. The Jeddah New Central District aims at reviving the old port area, and the developed master plan takes full advantage of the site’s pedestrian and vehicular links to the Old City.
Although over 330,000 m² of built-up area were projected for the project, the size of the parcel allowed a low density to be maintained, resulting in a zone with a pleasant living environment whose integrated character offers a unique experience to the residents of Jeddah.
