New Seafront

What I can see

The New Seafront of Thessaloniki is about 3 kilometres long, a linear multidisciplinary park, which spans from the White Tower to the Concert Hall. It mostly consists of natural materials and has a strict, austere geometry and clean shapes and perspectives. It is divided into 13 gardens: music, water, memory, roses, sound, sculptures, Mediterranean, Fokas, seasons, shade, sand, afternoon sun and one named after Alexander the Great. Despite the different thematic gardens, single architectural features are insured with extensive use of water and tree plantings, which form the alley from Makedonia Palace Hotel to the Concert Hall. The design aims at allowing a widespread use of the New Seafront, which has succeeded. It is ideal for walking, jogging, cycling, coffee shops, sports, young children’s entertainment and dog-walking.

What I can't see

Before 1959, the area was full of cafes and restaurants, which were demolished before the late 1970s when the beach was embanked, creating a wider and straight-lined seafront. The embankment brought radical changes to the architectural physiognomy of the eastern part of the city. The old country villas with large courtyards lost direct contact with the sea, the courtyards shrank, and the newer apartment buildings and the asphalt prevailed. Before the recent revamp, there were some green spaces and parking lots and a popular amusement park at the Concert Hall, which was then transferred. This resulted in restricted mobility on the seafront, which gradually deteriorated. The reconstruction of the New Seafront is considered a model of urban renewal and has been “embraced” by Thessalonians and visitors alike. It is considered the largest post-war urban project of the city, and symbolizes the transition from the misery of the Nazi Occupation to the modern city. Thessaloniki is densely populated with limited green areas, which makes the project a veritable oasis for the city. An interesting element in the architectural design is that no extensions have been constructed toward the sea (e.g. quays), in order to maintain the linearity of its promenade and keep it parallel to the horizon.

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