Kapnergati square is treated as a central communication space for the city of Kavala. The city’s collective memory, the history of the tobacco industry workers, the square’s topography, and its relations with nearby public spaces (Omonoia Square, Municipal Garden, City-Hall, listed buildings) are elements that we took into account for the proposed design.
A new fluid condition of connectivity with the network of nearby pedestrian streets which will interact with the new square (diffusion, revitalization) will restore its current state of isolation.
The enhancement of the Municipal Tobacco Storehouse is the result of the design of a new square that allows for the free movement of pedestrians. This is achieved by prohibiting the passage of cars from the adjacent streets, linking of the square with the network of pedestrian streets, creating new destinations under the square (bookstore and small movie theater), and placing the monument to the tobacco industry worker in a new location.
The square follows the natural slope of the ground and consists of small scale surfaces that create an undulated local topography. The outlines of these surfaces are referencing the shape of smoke leaves and the geometry of the Municipal Tobacco Storehouse. The colors of the chosen materials are reminiscent of those of smoke leaves. The proposed vegetation matches the urban characteristics of the area, while the square’s nightscape is created by the illumination of its historical buildings and various dispersed luminous objects (skylights of the underground space and elements of the sitting areas).