Bilbo's Island

Well, what would you know, Bilbo is getting an island.

You do not believe what I say?

Well, read this article and learn all the details:

A new island: Hadid unveils radical plan for Bilbao

· Billion pound project will cut off peninsula from city
· Neglected area to get new housing and businesses

Paul Hamilos in Madrid
Tuesday October 9, 2007
The Guardian

Ten years ago, Bilbao celebrated the opening of the Guggenheim museum that was to put the rundown industrial city in Spain's northern Basque region on the map, and draw in a million visitors a year. It has now launched an architectural project that may yet become an equally important symbol of the city's turnaround.

The British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid has presented radical plans for the city's neglected Zorrozaurre peninsula, part of a redevelopment that would see it converted into an island.

Once a crucial part of the port, the peninsula, in the estuary of the river Nervión, had been left to decay. With only around 450 people living there and a few small industries left, it seemed to have no part of Bilbao's glowing future.

Hadid aims to change that: she plans to cut off the land that joins it to the mainland, and reconnect the newly formed island to the city with eight bridges. The urban development will occupy 72 hectares (180 acres), with 6,000 new houses, two technology centres and a four hectare (10 acre) park. The Basque regional government has estimated the total cost, including transport links, business development and other infrastructure, at €1.43bn (£987m)

Hadid was once famous as the architect whose buildings never made it off the page. In recent years, however, her work has started to appear across the world, and she is working on some of the most important new buildings in Spain, including the civil courts in Madrid, the Spiralling Tower on Barcelona's seafront and other important buildings in Seville and Zaragoza.

Julia Madrazo, deputy mayor of Bilbao and regional minister for town planning and the environment, said the city did not want Hadid simply to design something beautiful. "If we had wanted just a symbol, we would have asked her for one building," she said. "This is about more than just the image. It is about creating a city to live in. We all have dreams of how a city could be, and I believe this is the closest thing to those dreams."

Hadid, who was awarded the project in 2003, initially met with resistance from residents when she suggested converting the peninsula into an island. "They feared they would be isolated from the rest of the city," said Ms Madrazo.

Over the next two years, as Hadid and her team worked with residents, local businesses and the regional government, the island's potential became clear. Added to locals' concerns were those of the Basque environment ministry that, if the peninsula was built on, it could easily be flooded, making the idea of a carefully designed island, with flood protection, even more attractive. As a result, the houses will be 4.7 metres above sea level and a canal will be joined on to the river Nervión, widening the riverbed to 75 metres, rather than the 50 metres originally planned.

But it was not just environmental concerns that dictated Zorrozaurre's redesign. The city was concerned not to destroy all of the old housing and businesses, many of which are being retained.

A quarter of the land has been given over to parks and recreation, and - crucial to the success of the project in the eyes of residents and the council - much of the housing will be low-cost. "This will not be an exclusive neighbourhood," said Ms Madrazo. There will be no uniformity in design, with buildings of various heights across the island.

Plans are in place for building work to begin in 2010, but it will not be easy going, with land to be decontaminated, eight bridges to be built and a canal to be widened.

It is expected that the work will be completed between 2025 and 2030.

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