Komo Restoration Plan

About

Komo is a remote town in Papua New Guinea heavily damaged by an earthquake in February 2018. The design responds to the disaster and the prevailing urban condition, building on existing infrastructure and resources to create a diverse plan that will act as a catalyst for economic growth, environmental sustainability, tourism and culture, grounding itself in a design language specific to the region. While suffering from lack of development and seemingly cut off physically and politically from other towns, the masterplan recognises the area’s potential, the natural resources, altitude, and idyllic climate that Komo enjoys year-round.  

Due to the masterplan’s size, the project divides into three zones covering the airport, existing town and ecological reserve. The starting point was to improve the current infrastructure, providing a framework into which the proceeding development could follow. At the airport, a new 3.2km runway will help create a Freeport trading in agricultural products from Komo and the wider region. In doing this, we aim to set up Komo as a regular stop-over for cargo planes to fill up on agricultural produce for sale in international markets. The runway also serves to bring in passengers and tourists to the area, catering to a network of eco-resorts in the Ecological Zone. These programs’ diversity attracts international investors and clients and activates the town at different times throughout the year.

In the town, development focuses around the old runway, which transforms into a central boulevard; an axis into which vital programs can plug into. At the projects’ heart is the development of international standard sports training facilities, taking advantage of the climate and location to provide high-altitude training facilities that can attract top athletes to the area.