Fishing Boat Harbor and River | Liopetri Cyprus | Zomas Alexandros et al

The site is located at the shore of south eastern Cyprus, between the towns of Larnaca and Agia Napa and it measures 42 hectares. It is predominantly agricultural and aligned on either sides of a dry river bed that reaches the sea at a point where a natural fiord like bay is formed. The diverse geological surroundings and the ragged Mediterranean flora of the area form an undoubted unique landscape.

The proposal stands as a binary between experience and function.

The landscape is approached as a whole and undivided entity, a place of experience , where nature and the naïf agricultural landscape are ever-present. Space is inscribed as the subtle interpretation of local culture in the form of a seemingly un-designed landscape, that unobtrusively engages the visitor through a plethora of stimuli that try to evoke his or hers memory. The program is spread in space forming islands of activities and services, in a way as not to obstruct the paths and the freedom of the visitor to move freely in the landscape.


Space is designed as to contain more than a single function and this is implied.

In regard to the onsite proposal the main concern had to do with the handling of the three striking characteristic that it bears.

The terrain, that is unique in all of Cyprus and it becomes the main attraction for any visitor that arrives at the site.

The flora of the area that is surprisingly diverse in regard to the total area of the site. Within meters of each other one can appreciate flora typical of seaside environments, of creeks, farmland, Mediterranean scrubs growing out of rocks and a seaside pine forest .


The small scale structures that gradually filled the canal. These vernacular structures were put together by the fishermen in regard to each other’s specific needs on how to moor their boats and unload and safeguard their produce and material.


Setting up the park it was crucial to maintain the principle by which different species are to coexist. These were scattered in the landscape in an attempt to form a pattern that is to be read and perceived as a whole.

Architectural Competition For the Designing of the Fishing Boat Harbor and of the River of Liopetri.
1st Prize Award
Architects: Iereidis Vasilis, Michael Aimilios, Zomas Alexandros, Mitakou Eleni, Raisi Alexia, Hatzopoulos Dimitris, Fanou Paraskevi, Lada Anastasia
IMAGE CREDIT | Courtesy of Zomas Alexandros

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Damian Holmes is the Founder and Editor of World Landscape Architecture (WLA). He is a registered landscape architect (AILA) working in international design practice in Australia. Damian founded WLA in 2007 to provide a website for landscape architects written by landscape architects. Connect on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/damianholmes/