The Office for Urban Regeneration was created from a collaboration between the Kosovo Architecture Foundation and Skye Duncan of the NYC Planning Department in 2014. OUR ran by KAF in the Prishtina Municipality premisses for 6 months and became part of the Prishtina City Urban Planning Department with a full time staff of 6 people. During the initial phase of the project more than 200 individuals, mainly recent graduates where part of accessibility mapping of 18 streets in central Prishtina.
The first draft project to be presented to the Municipal authorities was the “Deshmoret e Kombit” street which foresaw the complete regeneration of the street, starting with the sidewalk accessibility, providing adequate parking space for residents and quick stop parking, as well as the treatment of the facades and signage guideline.
The Office for Urban Regeneration also designed the guidelines for the first 100% accessible street in Prishtina. The “Garibaldi” street foresaw the easy access for wheelchairs, street guides for visually impaired as well as the facade and sidewalk commercial use guideline. OUR also initiated the spatial mapping of disabled citizens and easy to implement physical interventions that would enable them to visit the closest park, shop, bar, as well as schools.
In 2016 through the “Right to Social Housing and Public Space” project the Office extended its reach to other cities such as Fushe Kosova, Gjilan, Ferizaj and Gjakova. In each city the focus was on a particular underserved group of citizens. In Fushe Kosova the focus was on the Roma community and creation of recreational public spaces in the 28 and 29 Neighborhoods, implementing traffic calming measures around the primary and high schools in the city as well as closing up the Dardania street in the evenings and weekends for vehicle traffic.
In Ferizaj OUR-Ferizaj mapped the accessibility for all publicly owned buildings in the city as well as 8 streets in the center of the city. The same work was done in Gjakova and Gjilan as well, with a bigger focus on affordable and social housing schemes.
