The town of Enying, near Lake Balaton, has been renovated with a total of HUF 570 million in EU funding under the Green City programme. From the main square in front of the Batthyány Castle to the Cinca stream valley, the historic town structure was restored in a complex rehabilitation project developed by the DANU engineering, planning and consultancy firm. In consultation with the inhabitants of the town of 6,000 inhabitants, the municipality has created more than 55,000 square metres of green and community space, according to the needs of the local population, which has been rounded off by the regeneration of the Cifra garden behind the castle. The initiative also included new street lighting, walkways, barrier-free paths, an outdoor stage, a playground and outdoor fitness facilities.
This year’s Urban Development Award was also given to the Green City development in Enyingen, a quarter of an hour’s drive from Lake Balaton in Fejér County. Road 65, which was built decades ago, had previously unfortunately crossed the historic part of the town, less than an hour from Budapest, while the imposing market square in front of the castle was demolished. The urban regeneration programme aims to restore the identity and economic and tourist attraction of Enying, which was urbanistically mutilated in the modernisation drive of the 1970s.
From the main square, through the Cifra Sword, to the Old Hill
The DANU designers who developed the rehabilitation programme, the tender and the detailed plans from the ground up aimed to restore the historic urban fabric through a network of green infrastructure in and around the city centre. First, the untidy square in front of the neoclassical Batthyány Castle, the pride of Enying, was transformed into a real town square, with square strips of green space and square walls almost merging with the route of the 65 motorway running through it. But this was only the starting point for a complex development that reconnected the centre of the village with the Cinca stream, and thus with Enying’s twin hill, the Öreghegy, via the Cifra-road.
“The plan has been designed with a focus on restoring the historic character of Enying, while at the same time being sustainable and stimulating for the economy. We were keen to increase the town’s tourism appeal while at the same time expanding the leisure opportunities for locals. Construction costs have risen significantly over the course of the phased programme, which has led to several rethinking of parts of the Green City project. Nevertheless, it has been possible to create the network of green spaces and high-quality community spaces that the original concept envisaged, covering as much space as possible.” – stressed Bálint Kádár, Director of Architecture and Urbanism at DANU.
As part of the Green City programme, the Cifra Garden has been opened and rehabilitated with new walkways and landscaping. The illuminated main axis linking the new main square and the Cinca stream has been made pedestrian and cycle-friendly. The paths of the newly inaugurated footpaths were laid out according to the original concept of the park’s Anglo-Saxon gardens, leaving all the large trees intact. The main axis opens onto the newly completed recreational areas, such as the outdoor stage, the adult fitness area and the park area with panoramic views of the stream and the Old Hill.
Cinca stream and the Tchekonich House
The blue infrastructure of the Cinca stream has been improved with a new pond and a major clean-up of the surrounding area. The creation of an area of water on the site of a disused reedbed, with an undisturbed small island for breeding birds, has brought new life to the Cinca Valley. In addition, accessibility to the entire centre has been ensured with a pedestrian axis and a new community building created by converting a family house. The building, named the Checoni House, has a lecture hall and an annexe on the ground floor, level with the park, which can accommodate up to 50 people, while on the ground floor, facing the street, an office and café space has been created for a café or tourist service.
“We have created a more liveable, green town centre for Enying, on which the town can build further developments. Our team was so committed to the project that we realised two unique installations, the “Panorama Tree” and the “Fire Pit”, with our own office budget and the voluntary help of our staff.” – added Eszter Dávida, architect, urbanist and managing director of DANU. Panorama Park is a play and meeting place, a rest area and a lookout point in its own right. In the lower part of the Cifra Garden, which was previously closed off by back gardens, the Fireplace was set up, its final shape the result of a parametric design, with the pieces of the beam leaning on each other decreasing in size and twisting in a circle, symbolising the play of fire. The two installations have also won international recognition, winning the BIG SEE Wood Design Award in 2023 in the City and Community category.
The project, which was included in the Hungarian exemplary of the New European Bauhaus and in the exhibition of the III National Salon of Architecture at the Kunsthalle, was directed by Eszter Dávida, Bálint Kádár and Samu Szemerey as general designers. Balázs Miklós and Judit Rab were responsible for urban design and Dóra Kacskó for landscape architecture. Dániel Hedari, János Klaniczay, and Zoltán Vajda, as architects, assisted in the implementation of the rehabilitation programme. Panorámpa and Tűzrakó were created in collaboration with the Opinion Builders team.
Photos by Edina Cseh/ DANU
