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Christina Athanassiou, Nikoletta Georgopoulou
Perama (Gr: Πέραμα) located on the southwest edge of the Aegaleo mountain, is a suburb of Piraeus and Athens and a port city on the Saronic Gulf coast. As the site constitutes for centuries the primary passage to Salamis island, its name originates from the Greek word ‘πέρασμα’ (pɛ.ɾa.zma), which means ‘passage’.
Perama became a community in the 1920s, following the Asia Minor crisis and the settlement of refugees in the area. By 1925 and as the port of Piraeus was gaining importance as a major transportation and commercial hub, the State enforced all small scale shipyards to relocate between Drapetsona and Perama. Following the Second World War and the expansion of the Greek merchant fleet, the increasing demand for shipbuilding facilities and industries for the maintenance, repair and building of vessels resulted into the emergence of small to medium scale -mostly private- enterprises along Perama’s coastal front. In 1936, a commercial train track was constructed to connect Perama with the Piraeus’ harbour facilities. Unfortunately the track was damaged during World War II and was never reused. Today, beyond the disused train tracks, the linear private industrial zone of shipyards, the Piraeus Port Authority facilities and the ETEKA oil reservoirs, constitute an unsurpassable boundary between the city and the sea.
For almost a century, different social groups and cultures have been continuously coexisting and contesting in Perama, thus it could be characterised as heterotopic.
ɛtɛrɔtɔˈpia
Perama, Attica, GR
Christina Athanassiou, Nikoletta Georgopoulou
On the basis of the Atlas’ analysis, it became apparent that the main economic factor of Perama -the shipyards- in the near future will become obsolete. Beyond a mere regeneration, the proposed strategy aims at redefining Perama’s waterfront without losing its social and cultural identity. The new Perama waterfront will become a world class centre accessible to the wide public incorporating state-of-the-art shipbuilding infrastructure, in combination with academic and research facilities and a recreation and athletic centre. The regained accessibility to the seafront, in combination with the multiplicity of new programmes, will render Perama a desirable destination for living and recreation, an alternative getaway from the suffocating centres of Attica.
The new coastal development of Perama will benefit from a direct and quick access to Pireaus and Athens via the reactivated railway connection. The scheme foresees the development of intermodal passenger facilities combining a hydroplane airport, a bus and train terminals and a marina.
By sea, air and land, visitors, residents and workers will continuously discover the new relationship between the sea and land in Perama.
06/16 perama book