Magnesia PrefectureUniversity of Thessaly

Department of Architecture

Action 02Thessaly, Volos

. , mapping-

New Roma Settlement at Sofades, Thessaly

05-11 April 2009

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The present copy constitutes work for the course Art and Topos, in the Department of Architec-ture at University of Thessaly, by Annia Zachariadou, Eva Papamargariti, Anna Paraskeva, Yorgos Rimenidis, Rania Totsika, Helen Tsikardoni, under the supervision of Maria Papadimitriou.

The aim of the work is to present analytically the urban and architectural elements of the settle-ment and the morphological interventions that were realised by the residents during his five years of use.

The work was realised after recording and recognizing the new settlement of the gipsies in Sofades, Karditsa. The material was collected in three visits and contains photographs, interviews, video and sketches. Moreover, there was a collection of material from the old settlement that exists in the region in order to compare them.

Preface

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Sofades, Karditsa

Old Roma settlement

New Roma settlement

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map of Greece Karditsa Prefecture

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In Sofades, a small town of Karditsa Prefecture in Greece, there are two gipsyish settlements. The old settlement lies in the southern edge of the small town, while the new settlement has been created since 2004 in the southeaster of the small town in a two kilometers distance from the cen-ter.

According to references, the Roma make their first appearance in the region just before 19301. initially their abidance was short termed, but from 1960 and thereafter a permanent settlement is created- in private site- the borders of which are the river Sofaditis and the highway of Karditsa-Athens. The expanse of the settlement is 154 square kilometers and has a population of 2500 ha-bitants approximately2. Nowadays, the real size of the population is bigger. There had been births, the number of whom is not known as they are not tactically registered in the municipal roll. With the creation of the new settlement, there has been notified an increase of the population, because of the arrival of new families. Many of the families of the old settlement have been transferred to the new settlement and their site in the old has been replaced.

The creation of the new settlement was an initiative of the local headship in corporation with the ellenic Ministry for the Environment Physical Planning and Public Works, seizing a region, target-ing the relocation of the gipsy settlement into a new model of settlement. The local headship acted this way in order to improve the life conditions, as in the old settlement the road net is inadequate.

Introduction

1 .., 2007- 2013 (1 ),.. 163-164.2 (2000) ( ) - Integra, 318 .3 , , 25 2001, .24

9Most of the Roma dwell in barracks and there are no proper infrastructures of water supplies and sewerage. Roma believe that local headship aims to remove them from the face of the small town3.

1 Developmental Karditsa C.O., corporate development plan of the Karditsa Prefecture 2007- 2013 (1st fase), p.p. 163-164.2 data from a detailed record (2000) that took place by the Sofades Citizen Support in the context of the program Integra, in 318 family portions.3 Life short and difficult , Rizospastis, Sunday 25 November 2001, p. 24

Old Roma settlement

New Roma settlement

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Street networkThe central asphalt street that preexisted crosses the settlement. Other streets are narrow, clay,

without dinstinct formulation, they end up on dead ends, stopping on sites or shells. Looking along these subs andard streets we dont face the horizon. The view is prevented by the elements that are diffused in space and fill it in a random way without following a certain evolvent.

Provision of basic usesThe basic uses are diffused inside the settlement. There are five grocery stores, two cafes on the

central street and in the junction with the national road a large tent is often setted for the marriages. The school is settled in the northeast side of the settlement. There is no dinstinct zoning plan that receives the functions and uses of the settlement, in contrary the uses are diffused in different spots.

Old settlement

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stores coffee bars

school

road net

closed schemes

Provision of shellsThe shells of the settlement are not organised in a specific way. It is difficult to recognize certain

shapes. The shells are not articulated around a common place.Their back facades are often turned towards natural and artificial obstacles which set the space of each property.There is no total provi-sion thats why their orientation is unstable. All the above are mentioned on the following map.

As the map shows, there are no further partitions. The new shells are built close to the older shells, by increasing and extending the preexisting house. According to the inhabitants of the settlement the neighbourhoods in the settlement are formed because of the larger spatial concen-trations of the houses which belong to each family.

HousesIn the old settlement,is not obvious a specific housing typology. There are smaller and larger

houses. Roma people insist on preserving their different way of life through mores, customs and cultural specificities-inspite of their coexistence with the society. All these define a specific type of

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social behavior and spatial structures. At some points there are identical houses.The four main types of shells residence are:

a. The tent usually does not consist a permanent settlement, but the shell appears as a way to increase the area of residence when weather conditions permit.

b. Paraga gelatine.c. Paraga of wood and sheet metald. Manufacture of bricks and concrete blocks.The vans are also an open extension of the home and a very important tool for the life of the

Roma since you are able to exercise their professional activities and to provide space for both the residence of the family when they move.

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2004

In 29th of January 1999 there was given the approval for the process of a local street planning in the area that was not included in the general town plan, in Sofades. There would take part the realization of the housing project to settle the gypsies of the Organization of Working Housing. The area that was seized by the municipality for the creation of the new settlement lies in the southern edge of Sofades. Characteristics of the area is the easy access to the national highway, the stream, the plane ground all similarly to the previous area of their old settlement. The new area is of a total 470 sq.km. with a built presage 50% and building factor 0.8%. The project that was approved included 116 house blocks [h.b.] for the construction of habitations [625 habitation sites], 2 house blocks for the construction of educational buildings and an infant school, 2 blocks for the construc-tion of sport facilities and 1 block for a social building. The project also included the creation of streets, pavements, green areas, communal places, parking, playgrounds, church and squares.

The organization, of the so far constructed settlement, has a uniformly arrangement, there are district borders and a district separation of functions. The whole settlement is organized according

New settlement

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to hippodamian system of grid plan.The streets are wide, with width up to 13 meters and turnpiked. There has also been a planning

for small pavements inside the block that accommodate the transfer of passengers, reducing the distances of the blocks.

The habitations that were given to the gypsies lie from both sides of the way that connect the settlement to the small town of Sofades. In this part of the area exists the center of the settlement, as there are included the infant school and the square. There are the sites of the church and the market hall that are not yet constructed. This type of town planning probably has a reference to the planning type of the garden cities. The absence of a market hall led to the creation of small market shops in the interior of the habitations. Furthermore the absence of a church, made the habitants construct small church icon stands in their yards.

In march 2004, the first 84 houses were delivered. There were two types of houses, 127,99s.m and 138,16s.m each, that contained a living room, three bedrooms, a bathroom and an outdoor

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space of exercising

pi [ pi, pi ] squares [ green areas, playgrounds]

pi areas of commercial use

churches

pi / residencessites

pi/ education buildings / built

W.C. The largest type of housing also contains an outdoor storehouse. The prospect of putting a stair is also planned.

Therefore, the gypsies cultural features were not considered during the settlements planning. Only the outdoor W.C. was useful, as it helped them with their outdoor activities (clothe washing).

Comparing the two settlementsAlthough both settlements were planned for the gypsies needs, in the first case (old settlement)

the residents organized their territory on their own, and in the second (new settlement) it was planned by the local municipality. Both settlements centres are placed on central streets that link them with Sofades, and they are organised with small round squares. However, in the new settle-ment this is not so obvious. Also the old settlements small alleys appear in the new one where they link the back courtyards of the houses. However the distance of the new one from Sofades is bigger than old ones and its organisation is clearer, based in hippodamian system of grid plan. This grid in combination with the fact that the region is not build makes the growth of the settlement easier, in case more families move there. Regarding the residences, they are designed according urban space but they contain gypsy elements as well, like outdoor W.C., intense coloration of the houses and the iconostases in the courtyards, that are also observed in the old settlement. The two residences do not have a lot in common beyond certain exceptions of new residences that were build in the old settlement recently.

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- site- property

foot walk

parking

public space

streets

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- site- property

foot walk

parking

public space

streets

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In the settlement is noted a transfer of activities, that conventionally in the cities take place in the interior of the houses, in the public space. Activities such as the washing of carpets, blankets, clothes and house things are some of those. Furthermore, the streets of the settlement are used as places of exchange and market of food and cloth.

The children of the settlement do not use the playgrounds and the conventional toys that have been constructed there, but prefer the makeshifts plays and the play in the streets as well. Finally, the fests of their weddings and baptisms and other fests according to their civilization take place in the streets as well.

Streets, Activities

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Pavement tiles are painted in different colours and in black and white lines, creating various types of grids. The most common combinations are displayed below. There are also ceramic and slate pavement tiles, as below.

Pavements

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In the March of 2004, there were given 84 dwellings to the habitants of the settlement, all of the same coloring (images on page 42). At a variance of five years, it was noted frequents and many modification in the facades, regarding the color, the motives and a variation of additions. The only critique for the various modifications that the habitants have made is their aesthetic1. Many times they reproduce colors and motives that have seen in their wanderings in the neighborhoods of Greece2, as nomads. We hardly meet such modifications in the inner of the cities, as the law does not allow such actions. In their effort to incorporate their culture into the settlement, proceed to these modifications, as their eccentricity was not taken into account in the early planning of the settlement.

In the following pages are presented photographs of the facades of the a big part of the settle-ment.

Facades

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1 abstract of an interview with a resident of the new settlement. 2 as aboveFor instance we mention the next dialogue: -which was your criteria you paint your houses? -we paint them in whatever color we just like.

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The residents of the new settlement have used different types of railings in their house fencing and balconies.

There are different shapes, decorative patterns, colors and geometries depending on the choices of every family.

Below are displayed some indicative examples.

Railings

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The gypsies place plaster-made statues, as decorative elements, outside the entrance and in the yard. These elements are coloured according to each resi-dents taste.

Decorative elements

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The gypsies of the settlement of Sofades, are orthodox Christians. Probably, due to the absence of a central church of the new settlement, the habitants have constructed small churches in front of their houses. Some times made of beton others from steel, always according to the concept of the owner. Usually they follow the coloring and the motives of the houses and the same time they bear oblations and charms of the gypsies.

Iconostasis

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Internally of the dwellings is noted an intense decoration with personal objects, souvenirs of fam-ily meetings (weddings, baptisms), photographs of beloved persons but of singers as well. An in-tense characteristic of the big common space -living room, dinning room- is the huge carpets as the room is seen by many people. In an attempt to import the natural element in the inner space, we of-ten encounter the use of fake flowers placed in golden vases, or another expensive material, fancy decorated. Furthermore it is very often the use of furred ceiling in motives and colors that the owner has inspired. The color in the more private rooms is chosen the same way as in the facades1.

Interior Space

1 abstract of an interview with a resident of the new settlement. For instance we mention the next dialogue: -why did you paint your room pink? -pink is a color that is considered to be very relaxing for the eye. Thus I painted my whole room pink.

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The current form of the new settlement, concerning how it was delivered in the residents, dif-fers enough. The residents make continuous interventions, especially in their residences and not so much in the organization of the settlement. These interventions transfer these elements that facilitate their; daily life. Addition as shelters, washing rooms, deposits, small enterprises, small churches, and extempore outdoor living-rooms is observed almost in each residence. In the begin-ning the settlement had a united image in color and morphological elements, then the residents made various transformations according to their aesthetics.

Conclusion

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, ., , ., (.) (2001), , ......, Demiri, ., zika, ., (ref.) (2001), Transaction report of the Social service of Sofades, Edition ......, Karditsa

, ., (.) (2000), , Gutenberg, Karathanasi, ., (ref.) (2000), The Way of Living Roma, Edition Gutenberg, Athens

, ., (1999), - , ...Katsara, A., (2004), Approaching the different Gypsys settlement in Sofades, research project at Department of Architecture in A.U.Th.

, ., (2004), , .., Margariti, H., (2004), Roma Residence Model, research project at Department of Architecture in U.Th., Volos

, ., (1997) Rom , Gutenberg, Dousas, D., (1997) ROM and Racial Discrimination, Gutenberg Editions, Athens

, ., (2002), T.A.M.A, Futura, Papadimitriou, M., (2002), Temporary Autonomous Museum for all, Edition Futura, Athens

, . (.) (1999), , .., Sideri, . (ref.) (1999), Roma Lexicon, Development Office of Karditsa A.E. Edition, Karditsa

, ., , . (2007) , - , .., Tostika, L., Han, E. (2007) Roma Settlements at Sofades, research project in Urban Design Courses at Department of Architecture in U.Th., Volos

... 29.01.1999G.G.R. 04.06.1986

, B., (1994) , , - HORIZON, Hastaoglou,V.,(1994) Sofades Roma, Research of Alternative Strategies for the Residential Problem of the Roma Community in Sofades, Upgrade Program for the living conditions in the context of the commonage initiative by , Thessaloniki

, , 25.11.2001Rizospastis, Life Short and Difficult , 25.11.2001

03.03.2009, last visit 03.03.2009http://www.sofades.grhttp://www.tama.grhttp://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/greekhr/message/4281

/ Bibliography / Sources

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Contents

Preface Introduction Old gispyish settlementN New gispyish settlement

O Settlement, Streets, Activities Pavements

K Residence Facades Exterior elementsK Balustades Decorative elements - Iconostasis Interior Space

Conclusion

/ Bibliography / Sources

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Magnesia PrefectureUniversity of Thessaly

Department of Architecture

Action 02Thessaly, Volos

. , mapping-

New Roma Settlement at Sofades, Thessaly

05-11 April 2009