SOAR talks about the Dagat-Dagatan Design Competition

October 22, 2024

On October 19, 2024, the Lighthouse Club Manila hosted an event in SINE Pop, Quezon City that brought together 50 professionals and enthusiasts to discuss art, architecture, and urban development. Haruki Takashima delivered an insightful talk reflecting on critical urban issues such as informal settlements in Manila.

Takashima opened his presentation by revisiting the Dagat-Dagatan Design Competition of 1976, a pivotal event in the history of urban planning in the Philippines. He highlighted the contributions of esteemed awardees such as Steven Holl, the Japanese design team of Mikio Takagi, Kunihiko Hayakawa, and Keiichiro Takahashi, and the influential work of Ian Atfield, recognizing the diversity and global relevance of the proposals generated by the competition.

Expanding on the theme of urban rehabilitation, Takashima discussed the Pasig River Rehabilitation Program launched by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 2003. This monumental project aimed to address the environmental and social challenges associated with urban river systems and informal settlements. Takashima also delved into an academic project—a studio work at Harvard University focused on the Tondo area, a dense, historic district in Manila.

As a last point of discussion, Takashima outlined the initial observations during his visit in Parola, Tondo last May 2024 with Pritzker Prize Awardee, Riken Yamamoto. In his concluding remarks, instead of relocating the communities in Parola, Tondo, it is critical to “utilize the strength and value of the community” and “aim for urban development where the commnity and the city can coexist.”