The historical and religious approach towards city park design in Banda Aceh, Indonesia Case Study: Krueng Neng Park (Taman Krueng Neng)

Abstract

Banda Aceh has a long history as a coastal city; it had ever been a cosmopolitan maritime city based on Islamic sharia. One of the physical traces of this history is located at the Krueng Neng River, a site which became a Turkish military training area to support the existence of the kingdom of Aceh in the 17th-19th century. Currently, the development of the Banda Aceh city has the goal of making the city as an Islamic tourism destination. One of the ways to achieve this goal is by the arrangement of Islamic open space in historical environments. Therefore, this paper intends to examine historical and religious approaches in the concept of open space arrangement in Krueng Neng, Lamjame Village, Banda Aceh. This is important with regards to the Banda Aceh’s designation as one of the eight heritage cities in Indonesia, as Banda Aceh’s city plan will be developed according to the goals of the heritage program. The study model is in the form of design research that will develop an activity program and pattern of the spatial arrangement based on history and religion, and supported by location-based approach (field condition) incorporating both geographical and socio-cultural contexts. The result of the study is a park design based on Islamic garden principles and incorporating historical aspects from 17th century Turkey in the form of replicas of a Turkish ship and cannon ‘Lada Sicupak’. In summary, one of the options to enhance the goal of Islamic tourism in Banda Aceh is arranging a local park based on its historical aspects and applying Islamic garden principles.