Koper Central Park's innovative layout: a seed of virtuous development against the degradation of Slovenian coast

The main feature of the area is its immediate connection with the sea, which must be recognized as a significant spatial quality. The area is partially occupied by a large parking lot behind the city’s market. In the broader context, the area represents the first contact with the sea for visitors to the Slovenian coast, and the starting point of the riviera between the cities of Capodistria and Izola. Only a comprehensive and coordinated treatment of the entire belt along the promenade will be able to visually and functionally connect the two currently separate parts of the city into a logical whole

The area of the new Koper Central Park covers a considerable part of the larger site, and its design can serve as a prototype for further interventions. The new intervention, designed by ENOTA, provides a uniform and attractive appearance to the area and, with its intense green hinterland, subdues the heterogeneity of the surrounding built structures. The blending of elements of an urban beach and a contemporary city park encourages residents and visitors of the area to use the space in diverse ways

The fundamental elements of the new park are monolithic and undulating urban elements. Their controlled positioning in space, combined with the pronounced topography of the green areas, gently divides the entire surface of the park into introverted "islands," each hosting a function. The design of the individual urban elements consistently follows the activities they contain. At some points, they are taller and serve as shelter from surrounding views and noises; elsewhere, they are lower and allow unobstructed contact between the park’s zones

The urban elements with organic design host a children’s obstacle course, climbing walls, a seaside bar space, a concert hall, a children’s playground, a reading area, and more. Drawing inspiration from the nearby sea, the park areas are enriched with numerous water elements: a pond, ground sprinklers, a geyser, parabolic water jets, waterfalls, and a water platform. In combination with the varied urban elements, they encourage active use of the space and an expansion of the future beach into the park's interior

The planted part of the park is designed exclusively with indigenous Mediterranean vegetation. In order to encourage diversity in the use of its space, the Koper Central Park does not feature traditionally designed paths: the interlocking pavement with a free arrangement of grass-colored tiles is limited to access points and sections where more intensive use of the land is anticipated. In this way, visitors define their own path and their own way of using the space