Archinect - News 2024-11-14T11:43:32-05:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/144053964/does-foster-partner-s-maspero-district-masterplan-neglect-the-local-residents Does Foster + Partner's Maspero District masterplan neglect the local residents? Nicholas Korody 2015-12-23T13:29:00-05:00 >2015-12-23T13:30:17-05:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/j7/j777obp3srtooxm1.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><em><p>[Tarek] looks down at the glossy graphics, and then up again, before gesturing around at his neighbours. &ldquo;Where are we in this picture?&rdquo; he asks... Norman Foster&rsquo;s practice has chosen to partner with a government widely condemned by international human rights groups for its brutal crackdowns on dissent and widespread use of torture; in return, the company seems to believe it can carve out a place for itself in the vanguard of a progressive new era of urban design... Is it right?</p></em><br /><br /><p>Jack Shenker and Ruth Michaelson take a more in-depth, on-the-ground look at the political context of the Maspero District masterplan, which I <a href="http://archinect.com/news/article/140830159/the-selective-amnesia-of-foster-partners-maspero-triangle-district-masterplan" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">discussed</a> a few weeks ago. The Foster and Partners-designed project would remake a part of Cairo that was the site of numerous protests since 2011. The neighborhood houses the headquarters for the state-run media and propaganda machine, alongside both informal settlements and high-end real estate.</p><p>The authors note that Laila Iskander, whose record I praised, was booted from her job as head of the&nbsp;Ministry of Urban Renewal and Informal Settlements in September. The <a href="http://archinect.com/news/article/140830159/the-selective-amnesia-of-foster-partners-maspero-triangle-district-masterplan" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">previous article</a> has been amended to reflect this.</p> https://archinect.com/news/article/140830159/the-selective-amnesia-of-foster-partners-maspero-triangle-district-masterplan The selective amnesia of Foster + Partners' Maspero Triangle District Masterplan Nicholas Korody 2015-11-11T04:21:00-05:00 >2015-12-23T13:19:54-05:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/p0/p0cvy5u5joxuq4p5.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p><a href="http://archinect.com/fosterandpartners" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Foster + Partners</a> has won a competition to redesign the area around the Egyptian Radio and Television Union (ERTU) headquarters in Cairo&rsquo;s Maspero area, <a href="http://www.fosterandpartners.com/news/archive/2015/11/foster-partners-wins-maspero-triangle-district-masterplan-design-competition/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">according</a> to an announcement made yesterday by the Egyptian Ministry of State for Urban Renewal and Informal Settlements (MURIS).</p><p>&ldquo;On the banks of the River Nile, the future of Maspero burns bright,&rdquo; states Grant Brooker, Senior Executive Partner at Foster + Partners. &ldquo;And we are sure our sustainable model of development will set the benchmark for urban regeneration throughout the country.&rdquo;</p><p>The Maspero Triangle District Masterplan, as the initiative is called, endeavors to dramatically remake the Nile-adjacent neighborhood while still maintaining its current <a href="http://www.unisdr.org/archive/43191" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">demographic heterogeneity</a>, which comprises informal settlements of around 12,000 people interspersed among high-end real estate. The plan will rehouse the majority of the low income population in the same area, the press release states, and, unlike others in recent history, this d...</p>