Athens News Agency: News in English, 09-01-24

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Plans for Faliro cultural complex unveiled

[01] Plans for Faliro cultural complex unveiled

The 450-million-euro project will be constructed on a 16-hectare site once occupied by the horse-racing tracks and will also feature a 'agora' inspired by the meeting place of ancient Greek cities and the Stavros Niarchos Park. It is due to be delivered for use in 2015.

A member of the team that designed the Pompidou Centre in Paris and the architect for a number of opera houses, Renzo Piano presented a draught plan that was dominated by a raised inclined roof covering an entire hectare, which is destined to house the arrays of photovoltaic cells that will meet the energy requirements of the complex.

Beneath these are the huge reading room of the National Library, which will be designed so that it can also function as a meeting place and will be flanked by convention and conference facilities. The material in the library itself will be enriched by papers from the greatest educational institutes in the world, such as Yale or Harvard.

The National Opera will be equipped with indoor theatres but also areas for open air concerts and other events that will take place in the 'Agora'.

The architectural team has also given careful thought to the trees and plants that will planted in the Stavros Niarchos Park, which will be roughly the same size as the National Park in the centre of Athens and will seek to emphasise the Greek character of the landscape.

One of the highlights of the complex will be the canal that will run from the heart of the complex to the sea, filled with filtered sea water, which the architects envision as an ideal and safe environment for children to play.

The whole construction will be dominated by stone as a building material, one that is typically Greek and long-lasting over the ages.

Caption: One of the models presenting the design of the new Faliro cultural complex donated by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation that was unveiled at the Zappion Building on Saturday. ANA-MPA - A. Beltes.

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