The urban regeneration of waterfronts which is meant to regenerate urban public spaces involves efforts which are aimed at the improvement of the quality and the densification of the built environment and development in areas of natural river watercourses. These are efforts covering the modernisation of different types of areas – downtown, post-industrial areas and those of former ports, located in the vicinity of residential areas, boulevards – and which are also focused on recreational, cir­culation and hydrotechnical infrastructure. In Krakow, the eastern section of the Vistula River constitutes a design challenge for planners and urban designers, due to the function of the areas that are adjacent to it, which are industrial areas, areas suf­fering from urban decay, as well as wasteland areas. In the article the author attempts to outline directions for action regard­ing the urban regeneration of the boulevards and the waterfront in an area dominated by an industrial form of use – the Łęg heat and power generation plant, using the example of the development of the Vistula River boulevards in Warsaw as a basis.

The article is meant to familiarise readers with the subject of the development of riverfronts, which is currently one of the greatest urban planning challenges for contemporary cities. The problem is within the scope of sustainable development. The research focused on demonstrating both the economic and social benefits that are the direct result of appropriately development riverfront areas as they inspire interest in them in developers, tourists and, primarily, city residents themselves.

In many urbanized and developing cities we are observing the overheating of urban spaces commonly referred to as the Urban Heat Island effect. This pattern is forcing the development of innovative urban and architectural microclimate based solutions using both greenery and water to meet the energy efficiency certifications and to improve the living conditions of the local communities.

The use of greenery and water elements in the design of cities and other public spaces has been commonplace in many civilizations and often associated with local cultures and traditions. As an example internal gardens using water reservoirs are used commonly in historic buildings and spaces in Syria. In Italy or France, it is difficult to imagine public places without the use of greenery and water. As a reaction to the mounting evidence of the effects of the Earth’s climate change, Polish design­ers are called to consider the use of greenery and water as part of present urban and architecture solutions

Rainwater management systems are mainly dependant on geological conditions, shape of the catchment and the legal regula­tions. Basic documentat necessary to get before start of constuction is water law agreement (aquatic consent). It can be compared to building permit for the operation of the building. The scope of duties and competences resulting from this document is very extensive. In the Water Law Act the basic document is water law agreement (aquatic consent). The only exception is drainage of rainwater in the tight evaporation water tank, which does not require administrative proceedings. It should be proceeded by obtaining the appropriate administrative decisions. The problem is that such cases are not always examined positively.

**Consultations mgr inż. Andrzej Szymkowicz

‘Green is more than a color. It is a philosophy.’ – the Benneton marketing slogan used among others on the firm’s bags. Green color and greenery build nowadays a specific interchange for the idea of sustainable development when related to the creation of the urban space. At the same time, this includes the definition of sustainable development and excludes its un­derstanding through instrumental use of already existing green areas (especially trees). So a city, subjected to overcrowding (because of concentration caused mainly by migration), and on the other hand – to depopulation (through the migration to suburban areas in want for the nature’s proximity), as a ‘green city’ is becoming a social utopia. A description of exemplary dealings with greenery and water resources in urban space (and a comparison of the methods and attitudes to natural urban resources) starts a consideration process of the present and the future of a city as an urban form.

The article discusses the issues of the use of water and vegetation in architecture, and more specifically in a residential envi­ronment. Examples of the use of the plant world and water are presented to approximate their important role in the space in which we live, work and rest. Based on the review of selected solutions used in architecture: free-standing vegetation in the interiors of the building, atrium, orangery or winter gardens, it was shown that the presence of the aquatic environment in the living space, especially life-giving flora with a rich microclimate, significantly improves health, well-being, and aesthetic reception of the interior, comfort of living and human work, and primarily the quality of air necessary for us to live. An impor­tant noteworthy element is the use of the vertical surface of ubiquitous walls, which can perfectly serve as a base for all kinds of plantings, not only decorative but also usable, fulfilling a significant role in the environment in which we live.

The main purposes of the research presented in the article are following: 1/indication of the possibilities of the use of water motifs and water elements in urban composition and 2/indication of contemporary urban and landscape solutions, which are outstanding examples of the use of water reservoirs and water elements in public spaces in contemporary cities.

The goal of the article is the presentation of one of the largest city expansion projects that are currently being executed in Scandinavia, known as Nordhavnen in Copenhagen. The article will familiarise readers with the basic conceptual assump­tions and design strategies that were adopted by the authors of its design, as well as the practical urban planning tools that correspond to them. The article will also explore how the implementation of the conceptual assumptions looks like in practice, with a specific emphasis on green areas—pocket parks and so-called edge zones—and those close to water—wa­terfronts. Basic data concerning various types of surface area in the context of their impact and role in creating the aforemen­tioned spaces were analysed.

The article focuses on an analysis of the system of greenery and water of a city that was a frontier fortress at the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In the cameral scale of the city, the blue and green infrastructure constitutes an essential compositional element and a link between public spaces. It is also a legible example of the use of a specific location and accessible natural resources by an urban organism.

Water and greenery are some of the most obvious elements of context in the design of housing complexes. They belong to those factors that, during the preparatory phase of design, are subjected to analysis equally to legal and technical conditions. We are used to treating them as elements that fill up recreational spaces that accompany residential areas. Since modernist times we have strived to regain a type of direct access to nature that is distinct of the primal form of settlement, with the intent of creating an aesthetic unity between architecture and nature. In the latest built housing complexes we can observe additional tendencies associated with the presence of natural composition elements within the housing environment. Among these we can mention an improvement in the quality of housing conditions by providing attractive areas for active and pas­sive recreation. Another area in which the use of natural compositional elements is developing is the bioclimatic performance of a building. We are increasingly often discussing the subject of the sensory qualities of space, in addition to the therapeutic value of backyard spaces in the everyday maintenance of the fitness of residents, the necessity of which is associated with demographic changes, as well as harmful lifestyles that lead to obesity in children and adolescents. The article discusses the manners of the utilisation and significance of water and greenery in contemporary housing complexes.

Architectural and urban structures and complexes associated with cultural functions in European cities currently constitute elements of their spatial structure that are significant to their status and image. They co-create essential sequences of urban and landscape interiors, both within historical spatial layouts, as well as newly-designed ones, most commonly including those fragments of urban tissue that are subjected to urban regeneration processes. Many of these spaces are accompanied by green compositions, most commonly in the form of small flower-beds or rows of trees that highlight the monumentalism of urban and architectural complexes and which are meant to symbolise the rank and position of individual cultural institu­tions. Apart from historical park and residence complexes that are currently being adapted to functions associated with cul­ture, it is very rare for arranged greenery to dominate in these types of layouts, instead of primarily serving as a background for architecture—an equally significant if not a non-dominant element that shapes urban public space. The publication refers to a number of examples of contemporary built projects of such spaces in European metropolises.

Nuremberg – the second biggest city in Bavaria, after Munich – is also the location of the second tallest building in this state – Building Tower Nürnberg. This building is the main seat of an insurance company, as well as a contemporary showcase of the city. The entire office complex in question consists of a cylindrical tower and a peripheral seven-floor building in the shape of a quadrangle, in the internal courtyard of which there is a spectacular water pool and a space for recreation amongst abun­dant greenery. In this paper the Author makes an attempt at determining contemporary meanings relating to the introduction of an attractive recreational green area in the office building of a representational character for the company itself, as well as for the entire city. The Author points to the multitude of meanings and the complexity of values, often quite unobvious ones, resulting from the creation of showcase buildings for a number of diversified recipients.

Rivers and streams are key elements of the urban Green Infrastructure system. Their presence is associated with a wide range of ecosystem services, with particular emphasis on cultural, supporting and regulatory. Riverside lands have become a place of rest for residents, they also play a decisive role in regulating the city’s water and climate regime. The presence of rivers in urbanized areas is also associated with risks that are the result of not only inundation episodes, but also water pollution, sometimes to such a large extent that it becomes dangerous to human health. In the article, selected examples related to riverside locations of garden festivals (Gartenschauen) in Germany, activities aimed at revitalisation and permanent accessibility of river banks are discussed, while ensuring flood safety.

Bathing and swimming pools are a common element of social infrastructure of many of Iceland’s localities. Their function is not limited to recreation and sports. Thanks to their spread, low admission costs, as well as the attractiveness of hot baths in the cold climate, open public pools are a type of public spaces that are specific to Iceland. They compensate for the lack of traditionally understood urban spaces in localities and settlements that feature a dispersed structure of low density.

The aim of this article is to assess the changes in designing of the collective housing estate spaces that have occurred after the system transformation in Poland. Eight Cracovian housing estates designed in various decades, have been analyzed. The attention was paid to the functions and the aesthetic values of the green areas, their quantity in relation to the number of the apartments and the access to these spaces. Which solutions are conducive to strengthen the neighbor bonds, the identifica­tion with the place of residence, a sense of security and responsibility? After decades of experience, multiplication of good and bad concepts, is it possible to create an “ideal housing estate” that will be friendly, green and sunny, not just in name?

The political and economic changes that occurred in 1989 in Poland have influenced the development of recreational ar­chitecture and facilities. The transformations that took place within the field of the architecture of recreational residence buildings located in the seaside region of Western Pomerania exemplify these shifts. For nearly thirty years, one has been able to observe the progressing urbanisation of areas that were recently used for agriculture and forestry. These phenomena belong to a broader spectrum of civilisational changes that influence the relationship between seaside areas and the people who live in them.

The article presents the main stages of an outstanding lost object of Ukrainian cultural heritage recreation – Transfiguration cathedral in Odesa in 1999-2010.

Since architecture accompanied people, water has a serious impact on its character. Apart from engineering buildings, in which water is the main actor, in many cases it is an extraordinary supplement to a building, which would often not have such power without it. Thanks to water buildings often become works of art. It emphasizes uniqueness, creates, often with light and shadow, the mystery of the building. There are many examples in South America that support this thesis. We find buildings based on a similar principles in Europe. It should not be forgotten that most of the examples were designed together with greenery, sometimes being in the middle of a green garden, another time the greenery interfuse with the interior. All of them can be an inspiration for a building designed in Kra­kow by MTWW Architekci. Water emphasizes architecture by reflections. Greenery appears in the interior as well as outside, making users surrounded by nature the whole way through.

The Ruhr was one of the most polluted areas in all of Germany for decades. Towards the end of the 1980’s, when production ceased in industrial plants and mines were being closed down, a process of revitalisation began as a part of the IBA Emscher Park project, which lasted until 1999. At present, almost 20 years after the completion of the IBA, we can observe the long-term effects of the entire transformation process. The combination of the former industrial areas’ cultural heritage with the natural landscape and assigning completely new functions to them has led to a situation in which we can visit complexes of outstanding character and that constitute the man tourist attractions of the entire region.

The article has been devoted to the design of water and greenery in the shaping of the architecture of single-family detached houses along with their surroundings. The creative functional and spatial solutions of detached single-family houses within the landscape in the relationships between man, architecture and nature affect the beauty of architecture and its perception. Original and creative architecture of single-family detached houses introduces order, structure and harmony into the design of urban spaces, as well as optima functional solutions, providing the best possible conditions for living, recreation and work in a natural housing environment. When designing the urban spaces of human habitats in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner, in harmony with the natural environment, we should always remember that Earth is our collective home.