Ekaterina Varionchik: Sea Breeze in Azerbaijan goes beyond a resort project

Sea Breeze in Azerbaijan is already moving beyond a resort project and developing as a full-fledged coastal city with an estimated population of about 400,000 people.

Report informs that Ekaterina Varionchik, head of master planning at StepCity, said this during WUF13.

According to her, the project covers almost 2,000 hectares, which is comparable to the scale of a full-fledged city rather than a classic resort.

"Almost 2,000 hectares is no longer the size of a resort, but the size of a full-fledged city. Therefore, a full urban framework is needed here," Varionchik stressed.

The company representative said construction is already underway on an area of about 728 hectares, while almost another 1,000 hectares are at the new planning stage.

She noted that the project requires a comprehensive approach to planning, including the street network, block structure, transport, social infrastructure, public spaces and engineering systems. Varionchik said the project is based on the principles of polycentricity, walkability, transit-oriented development and environmental sustainability.

Among the challenges, she named seasonal infrastructure overload, fragmentation of public spaces and transport problems.