Battery Park: A Fusion of History, Design, and Urban Revitalization

dhk Architects' Award-Winning Design Breathes New Life into Cape Town's V&A Waterfront

Located at a key entranceway to one of Africa's most visited tourist destinations, the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, Battery Park is more than just a park. It is a symbol of the city's rich history and a beacon of its vibrant future. The site, which houses the remnants of the Amsterdam Battery, one of the city's oldest structures, was developed as the nucleus of a larger urban vision for the Canal District at the V&A Waterfront.

The design of Battery Park pays homage to the historic Amsterdam Battery while incorporating a 1,206-bay parking facility and providing spaces for leisure and recreational activities. The park and piazza effectively conceal the parking facility, creating an inviting and vibrant space that encourages pedestrian activity and invigorates the district.

Constructed with a palette of robust materials like concrete, stone, and steel, Battery Park is a testament to the innovative design approach of dhk Architects. The park features landscaped gardens, meandering walkways, a concrete skatepark, and a basketball court. The lower piazza level houses 11 boutique retail units that form an active eastern edge to the new canal pedestrian route.

One of the unique features of Battery Park is the Interpretation Pavilion, a precast concrete panel structure built to the estimated height of the battery's original walls. This structure links the park, piazza, and parking facility via internal elevators, providing a seamless transition between the different levels of the park.

The design of Battery Park was not without its challenges. The requirement to respect the original inner courtyard datum and create a lower-level piazza resulted in an elevated park with views across the V&A and CBD. Managing the transition between the two levels was a significant challenge, but the design team was successful in breaking the barrier between the park and piazza and bringing them closer to one another.

For their innovative design and successful integration of history, design, and urban revitalization, dhk Architects were awarded Silver in the A' Landscape Planning and Garden Design Award in 2019. Battery Park is a shining example of how thoughtful design can transform a space, invigorate a district, and pay homage to a city's rich history.