In order to improve the climate resilience and liveability of Curaçao’s Inner-City, various
interventions are proposed for Wilhelminaplein in Punda to mitigate the problem of heat stress, along with socioeconomic issues. This is done while keeping the problem of water scarcity in mind. Among various problem locations in the Inner-City, Wilhelminaplein was chosen as a development site because of its high potential and advantageous location. The main problems facing Wilhelminaplein are found to be extreme heat and lack of clear function, shade and maintenance.
Various possible solutions are proposed and discussed with experts, including a landscape architect and urban planner. Following this, the interventions are finalized and presented to various stakeholders, including representatives of relevant government agencies. Through a workshop, the stakeholders provided feedback on their preferred set of interventions.
The proposed interventions are subdivided into ’quick wins’, cool spots and additional interventions.
To quantify the effectiveness of the interventions, PET reductions of the proposed interventions are modelled using the modelling software RayMan. Along with the PET reduction, the initial cost, water usage, required level of maintenance and implementation time frame, are analysed for each proposed intervention.
To facilitate the practical implementation of the proposed interventions, an overview is given of which steps the relevant government agencies still need to take in terms of research, designs, and applying for permits.