The Winter Port Competition Brings a Record Number of Proposals in the First Round

As reported by the competition organiser, the Metropolitan Institute of Bratislava (MIB), as well as the competition declarers, Verejné prístavy, a. s., and the Capital City of the Slovak Republic Bratislava, 5 to 7 of the best proposals will advance to the second round of the competition. The competition is anonymous.

According to the international jury of the competition ↗︎, which includes, among others, British architect Catherine Burd, the chief urban planner of Amsterdam, Paco Bunnik, the Slovak urban planner working in Hamburg, Peter Gero, and the former architect of the city of Brno Michal Sedláček, the large participation in the competition points to the fundamental importance of the Winter Port area and the eminent interest of the international professional community in taking part in its transformation.

Confirms Petra Marko, director of the Metropolitan Institute of Bratislava:

“The exceptional number of proposals received and the truly international participation in the competition confirm that the quality assignment and the highly qualified international jury are bringing know-how from all over the world to Bratislava. We’re proud that the Metropolitan Institute, whose task as the competition organiser is to ensure not only a high-quality design, but also one that sufficiently defines and protects the public interest in this area, has high expectations to satisfy these goals, given the great interest in the competition."

The largest number of proposals came from Slovakia, Czechia, Great Britain, Germany and Italy.

Why is the Winter Port changing?

The Winter Port ↗︎ in Bratislava is considered to be the last compact transformation territory in the capital, and it has enormous potential thanks to its location on the Danube. The 65-hectare area is currently inaccessible to the public and is used for the transshipment of bulk materials from cargo ships. At present, however, it has outdated technologies, and its cargo capacity is used at a level of about 25%.

Therefore, the Ministry of Transport of the Slovak Republic, the owner of the land currently managed by the state-owned joint-stock company Verejné prístavy, came up with a vision in 2024 to move the port to the neighbouring Pálenisko Basin. The ministry considers Pálenisko to be a more suitable location for shipping cargo and plans to completely modernise it.

The Winter Port, which is now located in the wider centre of the capital, will at the same time be able to transform into an accessible part of Bratislava – a public city district.

The idea of transforming the cargo port has been on the agenda in Bratislava for decades. The capital city welcomes this vision.

The city’s chief architect, Juraj Šujan, stresses the qualities of the area:

“The Winter Port is a unique location in contact with the city centre, and it should become an integrated and accessible part, a district with mixed functions, high-quality public spaces and in immediate contact with the river and port basins.”

Thus, a long waterfront promenade along the Danube can be created in Bratislava, with high-quality public spaces with a reference to the history of Bratislava and an opportunity for developing water sports. The embankment, which borders the two river basins of the Winter Port, is particularly suitable for locating a specialised cultural institution, which Bratislava is lacking.

The transformation of the port is a process that will take years

The first step towards the transformation of the Winter Port was the Vision for the Development of the Winter Port Area ↗︎, which the MIB, together with the city of Bratislava and other experts in flood protection, monuments, etc., prepared for Verejné prístavy. The guarantor of the vision was Peter Gero, who as an urban planner was also behind the transformation of the Hafencity waterfront district in Hamburg.

The form of the future port district will be determined in more detail by the result of the currently ongoing urban planning design competition. The inspiration for both the vision and the competition conditions were successful examples of similar transformations of port districts from around the world, such as the Hafencity district in Hamburg ↗︎, Nordhavn in Copenhagen ↗︎ or Amsterdam Noord ↗︎.

The running competition comprises two rounds and is anonymous; therefore, the jury will select the 5 – 7 best teams. The selected teams will incorporate the comments and recommendations of the jury, as well as the output from the participation. What specifically will the jury evaluate, and what is it focusing on?

Emphasises juror Peter Gero:

“We’re looking for a unique and original proposal for Bratislava that also refers to the continuity of previous work. In the design, we want to see a functional connection with the river and with the city centre and the development of a specific location, as well as its industrial heritage. Thanks to this, a new multifunctional district should be created that is able to grow with the city."

Adds Paco Bunnik, a Dutch juror and the chief urban planner of Amsterdam:

“When evaluating, I’ll focus on the quality and sophistication of the urban vision, the sensitivity with which historical objects and spaces are integrated into the design, and how the design responds to the different scales of this territory."

At this moment, neither the authors of the selected proposals nor the countries of origin of the studios will be known. The high participation in the competition from all continents of the world, however, assumes a high quality of the selected proposals. The first round also confirms that international urban planning competitions are an important instrument in planning significant urban areas. They allow a broad spectrum of professional views to be obtained and different approaches to be compared. They also bring the experience of cities that have already undergone similar transformations to Bratislava. The Metropolitan Institute of Bratislava also specialises in organising such competitions as part of its mission.

The declarer, Verejné prístavy, a. s., praised the course and organisation of the competition.

Confirmed Matej Danóci, CEO of Verejné prístavy a. s.:

“Receiving 123 proposals from all over the world is clear proof that the Winter Port has enormous international potential. We believe that the right urban solution can open this space for people, create new functions and quality of public spaces and at the same time work sensitively with the port's history. This new district will naturally adjoin the functional river port in the Pálenisko zone, which we will preserve and further modernise in this location."

The final results of the 2nd round of the international competition will be known in November 2026. The Ministry of Transport of the Slovak Republic has committed to respecting them.

More information you find at the project web the Winter port in Bratislava ↗︎.