(AG Real estate) Urbanistic project of marina in Novi Sad

In a series of plans done during 2004 in the Public company "Urbanizam" Institute for planning Novi Sad, there is an urbanistic project of City Marina. This project comes as a supplement of series of plans and designs which are directly connected and relying on biggest city's resource which is Danube River.

After completion of study of Danube banks in the region of Novi Sad, started the elaboration of a series of plans and designs which have treated all potential and attractive sites. We do hope that those locations are sites where will rise a new Novi Sad.

This project is evidence that similar Danube projects, in our country, are very interesting, taking into account the recent assignment to foreign investors of marina in Dorcol, seventy kilometers downstream, in Belgrade. With marina project in Novi Sad another prospective development subject on Danube and on the territory of Vojvodina, is introduced. Such as announced, this location together with Petrovaradin's fortress which is topping the city and the river, have to initiate a new guideline of the development of the city of Novi Sad. This is at the same time the descent to the Danube, occupation of the banks, in the development term of the word, taking care as much as possible of the international river navigation and its characteristic, regulations, maintenance conditions and construction, utilization and during recent months very actual question of defense against flooding and high level waters.

The location of the planned city marina is on the left bank of Danube at 1259 km of the watercourse (measured from the mouth of the river into the Black Sea), on the location of today's Sodros channel, between Ribarsko ostrvo (Fisherman's island) and Kamnicka ada (Stone's islet), close to the international navigation traffic. The plan foresees spacing, positioning and functional interconnection of all indispensable programs necessary so that a marina could be described as the main municipal, but also as the one that will comply with tough regulations existing in nautical traffic.

Order of activities

Prior to any action, it is necessary to complete, facing voluminous civil engineering hydraulics, the actual Sodros channel. As aware, the mecca of Novi Sad's fishermen is exceptionally sensitive in the course of the year to the variations of water level. The depth and the width of the aquatorium are also dubious. It is necessary to deepen the channel, make necessary extensions up to the level of profile foreseen by the plan but also fill up a section in Kamenicka ada (Kamenicka islet). Today's inundating river ada (isle) could be brought to a safe level, free of flooding, i.e. to the level 79 m above sea level, by simple dredging of materials obtained through deepening of channel.

Since the main general plan does not foresee the area of Kamenicka ada (islet) being protected by a dike, it is expected therefore to apply adequate treatment in structural and functional meaning and before all on the ground floor of this location.

The other bank of the marina that is located on Ribarsko ostrvo (Fisherman's island) is equipped with public utilities and, to a large extent, in geo-technical sense is fit for the construction of bank stabilization.

Anticipated entireties

From the functional point of view marina is divided into two entireties. The entirety on Ribarsko ostrvo (Ribarsko island) is conceived as a overhaul and technical zone where would be done all those unpopular but necessary programs such as repair and overhaul of vessels, maintenance and fuelling, launching or hauling of a vessel, conserving vessels on dry during winter time and similar. Furthermore, today's acute city's problem of parking is solved by parking's versatility (multiuse) under the terrace of the future bridge: during summer it would serve as a car parking while in the winter it would serve as a dry dock for vessels. The entirety located in Kamenicka ada (Kamenicka islet) is a complex of tourist and restaurant programs that claim to possess the quality that makes the difference between a marina and a simple anchorage, which are abundant nowadays whether legal or illegal. Amid this entirety there shall be a central building serving as a landmark and where would be positioned all administration such as river police, customs, port authority, banks, post office, exchange office, duty free shop, etc. There shall be also a number of shops directly linked to the function of marina, such as a showroom for the sale of yachts and boats, outboard motors, diving and sport's equipment, fisherman's equipment, as well as unavoidable but necessary supermarkets. The structure with its size is forming half a circumference grasp around aquatorium itself and is creating a comfortable mini entirety in which are foreseen a lot of catering programs such as small club cafés up to exclusive fish restaurants. Besides all these programs, we would like to point out that there shall be built (pertaining to the framework of main building) a real multimedia museum dedicated to Danube. Programs like aquarium, naturalist collections, exhibits of archaeological findings, museum of vessels as well as areas where with the assistance of modern media could be presented all interested data concerning the river, the men and the culture that developed with it, are a commercial category in the world for quite a long time now and represent a prime mover of tourist and economic development. A complete tourist offer at the very beginning of their docking induces tourists to consider from another angle the city and its inhabitants.

During the elaboration of urbanistic project were used most recent international regulations and standards for the design of structures of nautical traffic. At the same time the experience of other cities in designing marinas was used, with the implementation of some novelties that would help the maximal use of local particularities.

Technical data

The designed capacity of marina is 720 although this number being relative since it is designated in conformity with the actual structure of registered vessels in Novi Sad and surroundings. There are four categories of vessels and a potential investor has the right to change this structure in compliance with the group target of its users.

Orientation towards transit tourists imposes lesser number of places, due to bigger vessels, while the orientation towards local users is imposing the opposite: bigger number of smaller vessels. All berths would be realized with adequate pontoons, equipped with all relevant connections (water, electricity, gas, telephone, internet, cable TV…). Pontoons will be placed in an aquatorium covering an area of 4.4 ha. After extension, present Sodros will have a length of approximately 400 meters and will have a width of cca 120 meters, same as today. With the Danube's main stream it will be positioned under an angle of 45º, which is ideal from the hydro technical aspect. The Danube connection with the future rowing path in today's Danube stream is enabled and on this spot is proposed a movable bridge which would enable the traffic of vessels necessary for maintenance and cleaning of the path/course.

Furthermore, the plan is recommending the use of most modern materials and construction techniques. With the appropriate solving of the main building it is possible to realize a good relation of the time we are living with such "natural" and alive entity such as river.

The navigational connection of marina's location with the city, before all with densely populated areas of Liman and Grbavica, is guaranteeing a high level of visitors but also access to residents from other parts of the city with a good network of communications. In the development aspect the City Marina has excellent possibilities to become an initial powder charge of a strong investment swing on today's neglected part of Danube's banks. With the construction of marina would be activated presently neglected space which is in the prospective the most attractive one in Novi Sad. The entirety of the shipyard which will not remain for sure and prospectively such as, offers excellent possibilities for the development of sports and cultural programs, to cite the example of Tate Gallery in London. Besides recycled industrial capacity the space is offering the possibility of constructing new structures on the vast area of today's military barracks of the River Flotilla by which construction would be completed the urban entirety of Novi Sad's Limans. Parallely with the execution of these programs, as well as with the regulation of Kamenicka ada (Kamenicka islet), the city would finally get completely arranged Danube embankment. During the last conference of Boris Podreka in Novi Sad the Copacagrana move in Vienna and intentions that preceded to this project.

The fact that Novi Sad has its natural oasis of peace, relaxation, sports and rest for a large number of citizens, it is only necessary to put it in order. In the entire procedure of exodus to the river, the City Marina has the key role. This will be a new Novi Sad!

Đorđe Bajilo, dipl. ing. arh.