KOCHI: Did you know that there are several buildings in Fort Kochi that had been renovated time after time by four cultures- the Portugese, Dutch, British and the Indians? Realising the importance of preserving Fort Kochi’s rich history and culture, Avani Institute of Design at Calicut held a week-long academic exhibition, where architects presented the myriad possible ways Fort Kochi can be developed in the future.
Architects Anita Choudhuri (Space ART) and Vivek P P (de Earth) who presented a master plan to the Department of Tourism, Kerala, showcased a video presentation of how they envisaged Fort Kochi to be 30 years down the line. The vision? To make Fort Kochi a world class heritage tourism destination by the end of 30 years.
Process
The process of preparing the master plan which went on for six months from October 2013- March 2014 was intensive with several stake holder discussions, surveys, documentations, presentations, feedbacks, exhibitions and so on.
Vision
The aim is to develop Fort Cochin in three aspects- as the quality heritage and cultural town, the visited town, and the sustainable town.
About the masterplan
The masterplan identifies two key districts- Fort Kochi and Mattanchery connected by five corridors.
According to architect Vivek, the primary aim is to document the rich and varied culture of Fort Kochi. “ There are two to three historians and several books which have been published on the culture of Fort Kochi. However, the tourists who arrive at this part of old Kochi, don’t have any clue about the richness of the culture here,” he said.
The documentation includes urban documentation where the buildings in Fort Kochi can be kept and constructed keeping intact the Portugese, Dutch and British influences. Since, this is one of the most different heritage areas in India itself, it can be exempted from the Building rules.
Building documentation: Preserving the heritage of the buildings
Memory documentation: Organising activities so that people don’t forget the culture of Fort Kochi
Architect Vivek adds that the godowns which are lying unused in Fort Kochi can be utilised as IT offices, conference venues, start-up areas and the like. “ This venture can use the local partnership,” he added.
Projects
In the masterplan, the architects have envisaged 26 physical projects and 25 non-tangible projects.
The physical projects include development of streets, landscapes, corridors, canal developments, waste management and the rest.
It is important to convert the heritage place into a transit hub, since it has a lot of potential. Tourists or locales who arrive in buses, can take a cycle to tour the city. Tuk-tuks and coloured autos which are common in foreign countries can also be introduced.
The rickshaw drivers should be well-educated about the history of Fort Kochi, which can be told to the foreigners.
Identifying Key Strategies
The main intend of developing a 30-year vision plan was to identity key strategies for integrated tourism development, listing of potential nine projects and phasing it, preparing a strategic guideline for infrastructure/development and creating a framework for execution/implementation of identified projects.Master plan broadly touches urban structure, transport, history of heritage, trade and commerce, art and culture, community development & natural environment. Physical boundary for master plan is restricted to the key heritage zones for Fort Kochi and Mattanchery area Identifying a urban structure for the heritage zone to define the key intervention was one of the primary objective of the master plan.