The Ellinikon Metropolitan Park and Coastal Front | Sasaki

Firm： Sasaki

Type： Landscape + Planning › Public Park Urban Green Space Masterplan

STATUS： Under Construction

YEAR： 2026

SIZE： 1,000,000 +

BUDGET： Undisclosed

Rarely does a city build a park that sets a new standard for carbon positive design and ecological restoration while sparking a paradigm shift for future public parks across the world. The decommissioning of the original Athens International Airport presented a generational opportunity to transform obsolete infrastructure into a resilient and performative landscape. After two decades of work to establish a funding and governance mechanism, the center of Europe’s largest urban redevelopment project is the 263 hectare Ellinikon Metropolitan Park. The new park will create an oasis of biodiversity in an accessible landscape where all are welcome, providing spaces for solace, civic celebration, and democratic expression.

Through an intentional combination of carbon reduction strategies, the Ellinikon Metropolitan Park will reach carbon neutrality within 35 years—a remarkable achievement for a project of this scale. By making carbon-conscious design decisions, the park reduces emissions over 70% from baseline construction standards for similar urban parks. This translates to a savings of approximately 96,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2e) that will not be released into the atmosphere from construction choices. To achieve this, 28,000 square meters of existing concrete from the former airport runways is upcycled and reused playfully to subtly tell the story of the site’s past. This once underfoot and unnoticed material is honored in signature fountains, massive retaining walls, custom furnishings, and various hardscapes. Additionally, the ecological restoration of the site sequesters an additional 41,000 MTCO2e annually. Through all aspects of the design from soil management, material reuse, water systems, food and energy production, and habitat creation, the park offers a lesson for how design decisions can consistently work to reduce carbon. The Ellinikon Metropolitan Park is heroic in scale and ambition, centering ecological restoration, climate responsiveness, and carbon positive design that symbiotically benefits both people and the planet.