Mohammed Bin Salman Non-Profit City

With the project site located in Wadi Hanifah, we were asked to respond to a design competition to create a new mixed-use innovation hub for Riyadh. in collaboration with Benoy as the lead designer, the proposed site would include a residential zone, hotels, offices, conference centres, and a collection of cultural institutions specialising in education, creative and digital media, technology culture and arts. The hub would stand as a centre of excellence and learning for all of Saudi Arabia.

The proposal put these cultural assets together as a family along the edge of the striking central Wadi. Through this approach, the assets would share common streets and spaces with each other, ensuring a healthy interaction of different user groups at all times of the day. This clustering of related assets would maximise and encourage engagement between users, the wider community and visitors. The striking natural Wadi, which runs along the middle of the site, would be embraced as the spine of the city, and the water that flows through it would act as it’s life-blood, transforming this arid Wadi into a national treasure.

Key design principles;

• Respond to the sensitive and natural wadi setting; preserving and rejuvenating its natural condition.

• The public realm and landscape will be embedded with programming and elements that promote well-being and create a strong connection with nature.

• Design a landscape which will enhance the wadi and enable indigenous plant communities.

• Design a connected city that enables walkability and a future integrated sustainable transport system.

• Functional and flexible spaces that encourage social activity and promote ease of access for residents and visitors.

• Development of a digital city which enables the sharing of common spaces and interaction between a mix of user groups.

• To be a unique place of innovation that showcases sustainability; with the aim to become a world class institution where people can work in a rich natural setting.