Dak R’tih Lake Eco-Tourism & Urban Area Master Plan takes home Bronze in the VUPA Awards

DP Architects congratulates its urban planning team behind the Dak R’tih Lake Eco-Tourism and Urban Area Master Plan, which clinched the bronze award under the category of Construction Planning Project at the 2020 Vietnam Urban Planning Award (VUPA). Held on a biennial basis by the Vietnam Urban Development Planning Association, the award recognizes and honours collectives and individuals that contribute to the common prosperity of the country through exceptionally outstanding achievements in the management and development of urban and residential areas to create quality of life in rural Vietnam.

The focus of the award and wider national agenda resonates with DP’s own founding principles and commitment to create built environments that achieve wellbeing and socio-economic resilience for the communities it serves as well as contribute to planetary health for our world. Thus, as the appointed urban planners for the Dak R’tih Lake Eco-Tourism and Urban Area master plan project, DP inherently understands the brief; successfully delivering a context-conscious concept and site-sensitive urban strategies in collaboration with our local partner HAAD, that will kickstart a first-of-its-kind tourism development and experience, thereby propelling Dak Nong’s position as one of Vietnam’s top tourist destinations (read more on the project’s contribution to UN SDG#10).

To transform and rebrand the low-profile town, DP’s design strategy applies a four-prong approach of Greening, Energising, Enriching and Enhancing Livability. This has then culminated in the shifting of the urban core with the introduction of Gong Village and the new City Square, which elevates the tourist experience while enhancing the sense of community within the city without eroding its unique socio-cultural heritage; the creating of the Volcano Tower as a new urban icon; the development and integration of an urban green lung through green connectors and an urban forest; and, the weaving of a water-based “lifestyle” into the urban fabric to generate greater vibrancy.

The project was also recognized at the VUPA for its proposal and development of guidelines of primary water treatment and secondary natural buffer for water filtration to protect the water quality of the Dak R’tih Lake. Apart from this, the master plan is projected to directly and indirectly generate 18,000 jobs in the tourism and services sector as well as boost the agro-tourism beyond the development boundaries (read more on the project’s contribution to UN SDG#1).

The VUPA is the first prestigious national award in urban planning established by the Ministry of Construction, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, and Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The award ceremony was held on 12 December 2021; and attending on behalf of DP Architects and HAAD is Mr Hoang Hung Nguyen, who received the award from VUPA jury member, Sir Emmanuel Cerise (representative of the Ile de France).