Koszyki Hall

Hala Koszyki

Koszyki Hall
Total retail floor area		21,000 m2 (230,000 sq ft) in total area including office space[2]
Parking	200[2]
Public transit access	159
Website	https://www.koszyki.com/

Hala Koszyki (pronounced

History

By the end of the 19th century Warsaw's continuous expansion and rising population necessitated a large enclosed market hall, which would provide better sanitary conditions. Trade and commercial activity was then usually undertaken outdoors rather than indoors, for example in the streets or, most commonly, on public squares. A circular market pavilion with separated booths for each tradesperson was already in existence since 1841 on the

Both of these were situated in the northern part of old Warsaw, however, its rapidly-growing southern part lacked such facility.

The construction of Hala Koszyki spanned over two years, from 1906 to 1908, and was finalized in March 1909.^[1] The name of both the street and the new market can be translated as "shopping baskets", but its name is in fact derived from a wicker (woven materials for basketmaking) used to strengthen the Lubomirski Ramparts, a series of protective earthworks erected between 1770 and 1771 which once ran along modern-day Koszykowa Street.^[8] Ironically, the name of the street became official in the 1880s, long before any marketplace was established.^[9][10]

The exterior was decorated with sculptures and carved

' for horse carts and wagons which transported the stock food to the Hall. A considerable problem was also the size of Koszykowa Street, which was narrow and soon became overcrowded, thus limiting access to the market.

Prior to the

Redevelopment

Hala Koszyki was purchased in 2009 by Avestus Real Estate which hoped to revitalize the object. It was subsequently demolished, with the exception of the two side wings and the northern wall of the arcade facing Koszykowa Street. Its complete redevelopment and reconstruction began after Griffin Group purchased the site in 2012.[16] The market hall was redesigned by JEMS Architekci and reopened in October 2016.^[17][18] All of the original structural elements were reincorporated into the new mixed-use building.^[19]

The venue inside offers restaurants specializing in haute cuisine, bars, pubs, cafeterias, bookstores and designer shops.^[20]

See also

• Arcade (architecture)
• Architecture of Poland
• History of Warsaw

External links

• History and architecture of Hala Koszyki

Bibliography