THE BARGE – the architecture of a public space along the Bega Canal in Timisoara

For half a century, the city s backbone (the Bega Canal) was almost forgotten, letting it become a periphery, except for the existing central areas connected to the historic public parks. The project proposes an intervention in the private sector by planning and activating an abandoned and neglected public space at the base of the „Bridge of Youth'. The first phase of the intervention consisted of cleaning the place up, designing a small deck café with it s specific utilities, this way opening and encouraging people to access the site; followed the year after with the design of a cantilevered platform placed on the concrete bank of the canal. In the second phase the Barge was brought, which seemed a natural solution for reinventing (adding character) to the place, and a micromuseum of typography was created in the bridge passage. Our proposal was to reuse an old boat and adapt it for public use, rethink it as a venue for hosting events and a small café which can function all season. The approach was meant to be a minimal intervention, strip the existing boat, reuse the metal obtain and add simple wood elements and a canvas roof top. So the capacity of the boat changed from 30 tones of fish to 120 persons who seek peace and quiet in the daytime and events during the night, alongside the Bega Canal. The forgotten place from the bridge base is starting to become a hub in the area, bringing together and facilitating urban tracks and fluxes the student s campus & the historic center, the promenade along the canal. The development of this space intensifies our belief that a minimal architectural intervention can have a positive impact in the definition of places and can lead to the development of such cultural ports/ hubs anywhere.