Tourist Complex in Sulina

Authors’ Comment

Sulina’s regeneration lies not in large-scale urban expansion but in layered, site-sensitive strategies that embrace its cultural identity, ecological limits, and the dynamics of a shrinking city. The Diploma Project proposes the adaptive reuse of Sulina’s shipyard into an eco-tourism complex, aiming to regenerate public and urban spaces while transforming a neglected industrial site into a touristic, cultural, and international hub.
The project blends historical industrial architecture with new accommodation units built from local materials, powered by passive energy systems, and includes a proposed canal to connect the rear of the site with Sulina’s main canal, improving site infrastructure.
First, unsystematic concrete "parasite" buildings are removed, restoring the original 19th-century structures and the site's identity. Then, existing buildings will host public and commercial functions such as administrative offices, a restaurant/event hall, sustainable craft workshops, an amphitheatre, library, gift shops, and exhibition spaces in the former staff houses, aligned along a riverfront promenade.
The new accommodation huts follow a linear layout inspired by the original houses and integrate naturally into the wetland environment using wood and thatched roofs. These structures are designed with minimal ecological impact and cover a small but effective area of the plot.
From a landscape perspective, the architecture incorporates local vegetation, reeds and native species, into a free-form environmental restoration garden that supports habitat regeneration near public spaces. Additional green areas include: study gardens for hands-on learning in sustainable agriculture; exhibit gardens around each repurposed house; and intimate green leisure spaces for relaxation.