New plan for the renovation of the Harminckettesek tere has been produced, which includes trees, perennial beds and a convenient bus stop to make the square more welcoming.

Residents will have a month to give their opinion about the plans from mid-November. As we wrote in a previous article, we want to make the centre of Józsefváros a cohesively walkable, modern, green and likeable place.  To do this, it is essential to revitalise the Harminckettesek tere. The plan has been designed with this vision in mind. If you have any questions about the plan, please send an email to info@rev8.hu.

The Municipality of Józsefváros has commissioned OpenSpace Kft. to design the renewal of the Harminckettesek tere. The planners also used the experiences from the experimental design to create the plan. The main goal was to create a unified, open space that would serve the city’s residents by increasing the green space and by furnishing the square.

According to the concept plan, the Harminckettesek tere will be reconstructed with trees, planters and vertical greenery. The planners intention was not just to have a bus shelter on the square, but to offer a variety of waiting facilities. In the unique circle-shaped constructions, shading is provided by trees and plants where it is possible. The square will have a variety of circular elements for waiting and resting, and the paving will also be decorated with these circles.

One is a structure surrounded by a framework on which climbing plants can be trained, and inside there is a sheltered area for people to wait for the bus. The other is a shading structure under which you can sit on a curved bench. The trees in the square are also arranged in circular elements, some of them surrounded by tree grating, others surrounded by raised planters with benches.

The plan places as many trees as the public utilities will allow. Trees will appear on both sides of the square, in front of the statue and on the opposite side of Baross Street. The trees will be planted with care to provide the right living conditions for the root system, and thus for the whole tree.

The experimental design revealed that the residents there did not want benches in front of their houses, but were happy with the planters. Therefore, the plan includes perennial beds in front of the houses and space for terraces for restaurants. Perennial beds are cheaper to maintain, as new plants do not need to be planted every season. In the last few months, we have also seen the appearance of insects around the yellow planters, which shows how easy it is to increase biodiversity in such a small area.

An important element of the plan is to eliminate the service road.  On both sides of Baross Street, from the roadway to the house walls, we want to create a single level pedestrian area, covered with light-coloured paving stones.

This will create a coherent space and give birth to the Harminckettesek tere, which has existed  in name only until now. The new space will be transparent and passable, and the statue will be more prominent.

It is important for the municipality to make a decision together with the people of Józsefváros about what the square should look like. Over the next month (October 2023), we are asking the users of the square to take note of the changes they experience. Join us in testing the space, looking at it with an open and inclusive mind, so that when it comes time to give your opinion on the plans and the future of the space in November, you can make an informed decision.

We will also be visiting the residents of the houses on the square in person, but residents and passers-by will also be able to give their opinions online about the past months and the concept plans for the square that will be ready by then.

Among other things, we will be asking you to decide whether you would like to see more cars on the square in the future, or whether you would prefer more trees and a more comfortable bus stop. Based on the experience of the past months, we are designing a square that we believe is worthy of the Harminckettesek tere, green and pedestrian-friendly. We believe in this direction, but the decision is up to the people of Józsefváros!

What will happen in the next 2 months?

• The end of October 2023 – end of the experimental design
• November 2023 – the pre-June traffic order will be restored
• From the middle of November to middle of December 2023 – evaluation of the experimental design and opinion on new plans
• January 2024 – the Municipality of Józsefváros evaluates the results and decides on the future of the Harminckettesek tere

More information about the Harminckettesek tere: https://rev8.hu/harminckettesektere/