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Beira Foz, the riverside revitalisation project in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, focuses on the 21km between the Itaipu power plant, in the Paraná River, and the Iguaçu National Park. Working in partnership with Usina Hidroelétrica Itaipu Binacional, the second biggest hydroelectric power station in the world, and with the Tourism Department of Foz do Iguaçu, Arup is developing an integrated urban strategy for this riverside area of the city.
Arup is providing urban design, transportation planning, sustainability consulting, and economic pre-feasibility studies. The masterplan design is focused on structuring free spaces and integrating transportation into the existing green areas. This will include remodelling the road system so that it favours pedestrians and cyclists.
Next steps for the project include updating a 1997 law focusing on special areas and tourist sites of interest, which define how the government understands strategic tourist areas to provide a more attractive model for private investment. In addition, public private partnership designs need to be prepared and evaluated to find the best model for Foz do Iguaçu.
“"This is a set of urban interventions and, in the long term, an economic, tourist, social, leisure, and preservation development strategy. It is also a border security project. It is being articulated by the Foz do Iguaçu City Hall because the definition of zoning and land use strategy depends on the municipal government, and it is based on a public and private investment platform, through joint urban operations and public private partnerships." – Gilmar Piolla, president of the Iguaçu Fund and Social Communications Superintendent of Itaipu Binacional ”
