Detailed Roadmap for the Waterfront Pilot in Rijeka

This report outlines the City of Rijeka’s expanded vision, strategy, and next steps for transforming its waterfront and urban core through the Re-Value Waterfront Pilot. Building upon earlier work focused on the adaptive reuse of Exportdrvo, a former port storage facility, the pilot has evolved into the broader Rijeka Cultural Corridor - a systemic intervention that reconnects the city center, cultural institutions, and waterfront through climate-sensitive urban regeneration, sustainable mobility, and participatory governance. The Cultural Corridor defines a pedestrian-oriented pathway linking key cultural sites, green spaces, and waterfront access points, integrating nature-based solutions, tactical urbanism, and mobility improvements to strengthen climate resilience and activate public spaces. Exportdrvo remains a central node within this framework, envisioned as a multifunctional civic asset combining cultural use, community space, and adaptive reuse of industrial heritage.

The pilot aligns with Rijeka’s 2030 Development Plan, the Green Urban Renewal Strategy (ZUO), the Green Infrastructure Study, and broader European ambitions under the Green Deal, the EU Cities Mission, and the New European Bauhaus. The roadmap reflects insights from stakeholder engagement activities, including an Impact Model Workshop exploring identity, governance, and climate adaptation; three annual Innovation Camps involving high school students and their ideas for waterfront activation and mobility; and cross-sector planning sessions aligning city policy, community priorities, and technical expertise.

The roadmap sets out three interconnected innovation cycles to be implemented between mid-2025 and mid-2026: narrative development to shape future stories for the Cultural Corridor and Exportdrvo; scenario planning to test spatial and operational futures; and governance prototyping to develop partnership models combining public management, civic participation, and hybrid financing. These actions aim to reframe Rijeka’s waterfront as both a physical and symbolic hinge in the city’s evolution, positioning Rijeka as a laboratory for inclusive, climate-neutral regeneration that transforms its industrial legacy into a resilient and participatory urban future.

Rijeka Detailed Roadmap - Explore & Implement