An old coastal fortification in Cape Town has been transformed into an urban park, skatepark and garden by South African studio DHK.
The 12,000-square-metre park Battery Park is located in the high-end V&A Waterfront district, which is also home to the Thomas Heatherwick-designed Zeitz MOCAA art museum. It sits on what was once the Amsterdam Battery, a series of coastal fortifications built in the 18th century.

The project forms part of an urban vision developed by architects DHK to transform the underused Canal District, by bringing a greater variety of visitors.
"The intention was to facilitate a new hub of activity within the V&A district whilst being respectful to the heritage of the Amsterdam Battery, once a place of exclusion and incarceration, but now a public space designed to support and engage the greater Cape Town community", explained lead DHK architect Pierre Swanepoel.
Battery Park includes a concrete skatepark, meandering walkways, in-built benches, a basketball court and new pedestrian routes to and from the V&A Waterfront.
The park, which is free of charge and reachable via the city's bus and train network, is designed to attract to all of Cape Towns inhabitants and visitors, regardless of their economic class and demographic.
"The V&A Waterfront is one of the most affluent areas in Cape Town and is frequented by locals and tourists. Battery Park does not simply appeal to a higher demograp...