Modern Movement, land ownership and urban tissue: possibilities of urban regeneration projects in the centre of Thessaloniki

Abstract

Due to structural features of the production framework of the Greek urban space, which did not allow the extensive application of urban land redistribution and big scale projects, the only urban interventions that followed the Modern Movement principles were implemented mainly by public bodies, either in the housing sector or in social equipment zones. In Thessaloniki, the most interesting Modern Movement examples in the urban scale, both in terms of land use - zoning - and of urban tissue morphology, are met in the wider area on the eastern borders of the historic centre, the well-known "eastern rift". This area includes the Thessaloniki International Fair, the university campus, the military headquarters campus, and a series of other important cultural, health and sport facilities. The paper explores the possibilities of reusing and enhancing these central areas to highlight the Modern Movement urban heritage, through sustainable urban design projects based on the creation of open green spaces, and the upgrading of the public space that promotes the reduction of energy consumption and extensive public transport networks.