March 07, 2005. Alexandria, Egypt (eTurboNews) -- Turkey brings a lot to the Euro-MED table presenting opportunities for economic improvement in the Mediterranean basin. Husamettin Kavi, Chairman of the Assembly, Istanbul Chamber of Commerce said Turkey needs to increase the efficiency of infrastructure in transportation, water, energy and telecommunication to improve delivery of core services.

Surface transport, contracting out services and funding mechanisms for investment all need to be addressed. Policy reforms inviting competition and private investments are a tool to meet transportation goals. “Creating efficient transport links between Mediterranean partners and the EU is fundamental to increasing Euro-Med economic and financial partnership,” he said.

Aside from a Euro-Med Free Trade area targeted for 2010, Kavi said Mediterranean countries should work toward improving the investment climate which encompasses the infrastructure investments and the interconnection of the region. Turkey hopes to see major changes as an offshoot of the Barcelona Process started in 1995 with the EU and the next Euro-Med Summit to take place in Amman, Jordan next fall as the 10th is a series of Action Program for the Dialogue between Civilizations and Cultures.

Venice’s predicament, worsened by higher water flooding, unsafe industrial activity located within the city, wave-induced damage that harms palaces and opens up cracks along the canal edges and the massive flow of tourists, leaves the city exposed to further deterioration.

Venitian delegates spoke about a ‘new’ Venice, which will be re-designed and re-organized following four directions, including safeguarding the city and the lagoon against the exceptional tides and guaranteeing a constant urban maintenance; giving new opportunities for living in Venice, thus creating more residential facilities; assuring a good and efficient level of urban mobility; and redeveloping the waterfront areas as new domain for productive activities, including the university’s ones.

Said Rinio Bruttomesso, director of the International Centre Cities on Water in Venice, a vast number of new and even revolutionary ideas are on the drawing board. His group is currently looking at developing intermodal terminals, a new tram line and the sub-lagoon subway. The first consists of creating two new intermodal terminals on the mainland-lagoon edge, at Tessera Airport and Fusina; their function will be to intercept the large-scale flows of mostly coach-borne tourists directed towards the historic city core, and which currently arrive at Piazzale Roma.

In the future, these ‘flows’ will be diverted either north to the terminal at Tessera, in the vicinity of the airport, where a multi-functional complex will be built, or south to Fusina, which will host a second intermodal terminal.

From these two interchange points the journey of thousands of tourists will proceed towards Venice by large ferries or roomy vaporetti, enabling the passengers on this short trip to understand Venice’s essential nature as city on water and appreciate its wonderful forms, as they approach with the right measure of ‘slower traffic.”

Engineers will also introduce a tramline running between Mestre and Venice via the Ponte della Libertà and terminating at the wharves of the old port.

Finally, something that is in the heart of controversy, is the third new element: a sub-lagoon connection with a train akin to a subway, to link the airport zone, Tessera with the island of Murano, the northern edge of the historical core and the Lido, via a route yet to be decided but which may involve other parts of the city.

Travel times, in this case between the mainland and the historical core would be reduced to a matter of minutes, thus canceling the very presence of water, due to the passage beneath the lagoon.

Debate focuses on whether or not it is appropriate for Venice, if the aim is to provide a credible and convenient solution to all those people who may like to come and live or work in the city, according to Bruttomesso. Whether the idea is compatible with this city on water or if this is the necessary measure for dealing definitively and radically with the need for rapid movement and mobility in Venice, is ultimately the issue that needs to be addressed.

In the pipeline for the host city, so-called Pearl of the Mediterranean, aka Alexandria, are projects for the re-qualification of the waterfront as presented at the International Exhibition MED CITIES and the coast’s recovery and transformation. The second largest city in Egypt is considering re-conversion of its coastal areas as a fundamental part of any new urban landscape project directly linked to the Med dialogues the city witnessed.

Up next for Bibliotheca Alexandrinaare the following events: Workshop on Climate Variability over Africa (6-17 March 2005), a Ceramic Exhibition (10/03/2005 to 10/04/2005); Beyond: “Imagining the Book” (April); Second International Forum on Calligraphy, Writing and Inscriptions (April); Einstein Symposium (4-6 June); and its Summer Festival (July-August).

(part two of a two-part series)

By: Hazel Heyer

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