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BAKU BLACK CITY

One of the symbols of Baku at the beginning of 20th century was the famous Black City, the “oil zone”, where the first oil refining factories were built. Appearance of factories was only a harbinger of the future revival of industrial life of Baku. Its true development began after the promulgation of the law dated on February 17, 1872 concerning cancellation of buy-out systems in petroleum industry. For Baku it was an event of huge value, the original progressive phenomenon in the development of petroleum industry not only in Azerbaijan, but also in Russia. It also had impact on city planning in Baku.

Numerous oil refining factories at the beginning of 1870s irregularly occupied the big territories of the city lands. Intensive growth of petroleum industry promoted development of the territory, mainly in eastern direction, along lines of three parallel roads (later Balakhansky, Surakhansky and Telephone streets). Such a neighborhood with suburbs promoted neither its growth, nor favorable living conditions: factory buildings already occupied considerable territories and represented, despite organized, but as a whole, territory inconvenient for the population with capital building, with the factory pipes which were constantly emitting soot and smoke.

Dissatisfaction of the population and awakening of its public life forced the provincial authorities to concern seriously in a development problem along with settlement of factory area which could become the big obstacle for normal growth of a city. The provincial administration made a decision on transferring of photogene (oil) factories to common city lands and addressed to the Caucasian deputy with the petition to support this decisive step. The question brought up before the Caucasian deputy was so important that soon in spite of the fact that around three lines there already was a great number of photogene factories, "the will of the former deputy Caucasian about pulling down of 147 photogene factories after considering them to be near the city quarters" followed. This act, actually, liquidated the big factory area in a city in which oilmen had invested large capitals.

Infringement of the rights of proprietors in favor of city and public interests to that extent was the exclusive fact in the history of capitalist Baku. In order to place the factory area in eastern boundaries of city pasture the project plan was made in 1876. Here was built photogenic factories instead of those closed down within the precincts of the city. To build photogene factories beyond the boundaries of the Black city "for the purpose of improvement of sanitary conditions in a city" was strictly forbidden. Thus, partially in pastures of settlement Keshla and in city pasture where kitchen gardens and garden sites of local residents settled down, there was the Black city taken its name from black factory constructions and closely connected with a name of the well-known Nobel brothers.

Thanks to efforts of the Nobel brothers, the industrial zone was founded considerably far from the residential quarters (more than 2 km) of suburbs. For the first time in the history of city-planning practice (and not only Russia) the project plan based on a principle of a regularity of building was developed for this industrial region. Under this project, the Black City received a rectangular grid of quarters. Wide and straight highways united large quarters of industrial region. One of these highways came to the end with city square, directly connected with numerous wharfs.

In comparison with a plan of suburbs, with its small quarters and a network of narrow streets in Black city, characteristic for a new epoch of large planning scale and understanding of importance of removal of an industrial zone from the residential area was clearly defined.

After the territory of the Black city was already built within the projects, owners of factories began to search for the new, convenient lands for exploitation. As the character of factories changed, even large quarters of the Black city didn't meet new requirements of industrial production. Capitalists didn’t need separate quarters as land units, but vast space over which could be built railway.

In the White city, natural continuation of the Black city, tendencies of planning of industrially-factory area Baku were reflected. The rectangular grid of the plan of the Black city at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries gives way to less regular because the industrial territories developing in a direction of the White city, were integrated. Now all followed the interests of industrialists and technical requirements of factory building; the unique and organized planning put at development of territory of the White city, wasn't considered.

Only the territory of separate factories with the areas adjoining to them was more or less organized, and some attention was paid to their improvement. At the beginning of the XX century, in Baku there already was a big industrial region. Industrialists and land proprietors were more operative and enterprising city administration and consequently quickly estimated the advantages of new system of planning of factory area before small quarters and narrow streets of suburbs.

As it is not paradoxical, but after liquidation of the whole factory area (147 factories), located in a zone of inhabited quarters, the city couldn't receive the confirmed perspective general plan though since transformation of Baku into the provincial center (1859) passed enough time(20 years), and only in 1878 started drawing up of the general plan of a city.

Subsequently the Black city played an important role in petroleum industry more than 100 years, carrying out activity on processing, storage and transportation of "black gold". As result, oil wastes formed in the course of manufacture of oil throughout many years, led to pollution of the lands and water pools.

Nowadays unknown prospect on revival opens to the industrial space of the Black city which is in the center of the Baku bay. By the order of the chief Executive Power of Baku city dated on June 11, 2007, a decision was made on restoration and planning of territory of the Black city which now carries the name Baku White City. The given order of the Executive Power of Baku is the next step in the direction of implementation of the decree of the president of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev concerning approval of “The Plan of complex actions for improvement of the ecological condition in the Republic of Azerbaijan for 2006-2010”.

The general layout of the project with the same name provides for creation of 10 universal quarters of city type, each of which will provide the inhabitants with the best conditions for life, works, rest and entertainments. To work on project Baku White City, along with the Azerbaijan experts, company Atkins (Great Britain) specialized in the area of engineering design, as well as well- known architectural firms as Foster + Рartners and F+A Architects have been involved.

With implementation of project Baku White City the industrial shape of the Black city will leave in a non-existence, having given the way to comfort and a harmony, being a component of such concept as city ecology. Because the last, as is known, includes creation of favorable conditions for human life in a city that is reached at the expense of a correct quarter planning, gardening, use of principles of ecological architecture and liquidation of pollution.