Tudela (Club Med) Restoration Project, image courtesy Pau Ardèvol
Tudela (Club Med) Restoration Project, image courtesy Pau Ardèvol
In 1961, on the eastern tip of Iberia Peninsula, Cap de Creus cape, one the windiest and most northern exposed corner of our geography, Club Med constructed a privative holiday village with 430 buildings to receive around 900 visitors 3 months a year. The urbanization project it is considered as one of the most notorious examples of modern movement settlement on the Mediterranean coast. With the advent of democracy and the rise of ecological consciousness, Cap de Creus was declared Natural Park in 1998. The cape, including Club Med surroundings, was classed with the highest figure of land protection because its outstanding geological and botanical values. In summer 2003 Club Med ceased activity.
Tudela (Club Med) Restoration Project - Before and after, image courtesy EMF
In the period, 2008-10, Club Med has been ‘deconstructed’, its ecological dynamics revived and a network of paths and viewpoints as been ‘remade’ for its rediscovery, becoming Mediterranean coast biggest restoration project ever. The work distills and enhances the consubstantial values of the site, the diversity of geological formations, the harshness and nakedness of the rock outcrops, the specialization of native vegetation, the wind and the sea magnificence.
Tudela (Club Med) Restoration Project, image courtesy EMF
Tudela (Club Med) Restoration Project, image courtesy EMF
Five actions are contemplated in the restoration project:
- Removal of Invasive Exotic Flora (IEF), Carpobrotus edulis
and other 10 species on a surface of 90 ha. IEF once planted in the Club scattered around displacing specialized maritime rocky native communities of EU protected flora. - Selective deconstruction of 430 buildings, equivalent of 1.2 ha of edification and 6ha of urbanization.
- Management & recycling of 100% of construction waste, 45.000 m3, reusing ‘in situ’ local stone for landfills, and transporting ceramic materials outside for civil works.
- Ecosystem dynamics revival, remaking the site’s topography and drainage systems, to reestablish the original sediment flows and exchanges between land and sea.
- Discovery & social valorization. Including 3 main interventions:+ Hierarchical path system recycling existing paths and promoting circular routes.
+ Main path (2km) structuring the site’s discovery, it reuses the existing main road and reduces its section from 7-4 m to 3.5 m while homogenizes paving treatment with asphalt. At the beach, 250m are newly redone to recover the beach full dimension, once quartered by the former road system.
+ Secondary paths, out of concrete, leading to the main viewpoints
+ Tertiary paths, ‘without firm, out of low disperse railings, which leads to the secondary network of viewpoint and sensitive areas.
+ Network of viewpoints to enhance best panoramas.
+ Animal-rock identification. Traditionally fishermen’s and kids had identified rock formations with animal names for its orientation, Dalí did too. The project, proposing a game of perception constructs a sort of ‘lecterns’ outlining the ‘animal-rocks’ silhouette.
Tudela (Club Med) Restoration Project - Animal rocks identification, drawing courtesy EMF
+ Project credits / data
Project: TUDELA (CLUB MED) RESTORATION PROJECT IN CAP DE CREUS CAPE
Location: Cap de Creus cape, Cadaqués, Catalunya, Spain
Area: 200 ha
Period of design: 2005-2007
Implementation period: 2009-2010
Landscape architects: EMF landscape architects: Martí Franch | http://www.emf.cat/
Architects: J/T ARDÈVOL I ASSOCIATS S.L. Ton Ardèvol
Collaborators EMF: M. Batalla, M. Bianchi, A. Lopez, G. Batllori, L. Majer, C. Gomes M. Solé, L. Ochoa, J.L Campoy
Collaborators Ardèvols: Raul Lopez, Cristina Carmona.
Commissioned by: Ministerio de Medio Ambiente, Medio Rural y Marino. Generalitat de Catalunya. Parc Natural del Cap de Creus. Gestora de runes de la construcció S.A
Construction companies: Tragsa, Control Demeter, Massachs i Jardinería Sant Narcís.
Photographers: Martí Franch, Pau Ardèvol, Esteve Bosch
+ About EMF
At the turn of a century in which the perception, the habits and the ideals with respect to the territory, the city and public space evolve constantly, EMF landscape architecture, work with knowledge of the opportunities and limitations that it presupposes in working with living material, in this dynamic environment and ever more diverse public. EMF work world wide on projects and studies of Public Spaces, urban planning and the organisation of territories in public and private areas.
‘Estudi EMF’ was born in 1999 after a period of formation and professional training in Barcelona, Amsterdam, London and Berlin, in which the opportunity was taken to compare different approaches to landscaping, the culture of public spaces and the organization of cities and territories.
EMF is a team of landscape architects, architects and agricultural technical engineers and collaborates with other institutions and professionals participating in all aspects of the projects, such as the planning and writing and technical assessments, to guarantee the quality of all projects carried out.
Working on projects of various scales and themes: public spaces within the city: parks, promenades, squares, spaces surrounding public and communal buildings, houses and gardens. In projects for preparing natural spaces for public use: projects of leisure areas, the Study of Integration and Impact on the Landscape (EIIL), vantage points or view points, a manual of urban furniture and signs and the Plans of areas of Public use. On the large scale EMF work with the infrastructures concerning the landscape, in the syntheses of visions for the structure of public areas in the city, in the study and creation of leisure zones and the writing of urbanistic projects.
Among the projects undertaken by EMF some of the outstanding projects are the organisation of the banks of River Têt in Perpignan (F); the environmental restoration project of Club Med at Cap de Creus and the Program of the organisation of the Punta de Cap de Creus, the Public Gardens of Can Framis in district 22 @ of Barcelona, the cemetery of Laroque des Alberes (F), the Leisure Area of Coll de Can Massana in PN of Montserrat, the Nautical Pole at Canet de Rosselló (F), preliminary sketches of the organisation of the landscape of l’Espai Fluvial of Llobregat in Molins de Rei, Sant Vicenç dels Horts, the Papiol and Sant Feliu de Llobregat, the water purification plant at Perpngnan (F)…
Martí Franch has taken and now gives classes for Superior Graduate of Landscape Gardening and for the Landscape Architecture Masters in the Superior School of Architecture in Barcelona (ETSAB) and the teaching of Landscape Supervision and Management at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB).
The EMF Team consists of professionals in all fields of Landscape Architecture, Architecture and Agricultural Technical Engineering and collaborates with other institutions and professionals to guarantee quality in all projects carried out. ‘L’Estudi EMF’ participates in all aspects of the projects; the planning and writing as well technical advice from and for others in both public and private sectors.
+ All images and drawings courtesy EMF | Photo by Martí Franch, Pau Ardèvol, Esteve Bosch
