Woods Bagot Firm Designs Lalzit Bay Resort & Spa

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(LALZIT BAY, ALBANIA) -- Award-winning architects, Woods Bagot, have been working on the master plan for the Balkan's latest five-star resort called Lalzit Bay Resort & Spa, located on the stunning Adriatic coast of Albania.

Woods Bagot, who have designed and developed urban and resort masterpieces throughout the world, are working closely with the team of UK-based developers behind Lalzit Bay to develop the luxury residential resort complex which is due to deliver the first properties in late 2012.

Lalzit Bay will more than lead the field of residential development in Albania, if not the Balkans, being on a par with other prestigious developments designed by Woods Bagot such as Minthis Hills in Cyprus, winner of the Best Golf Resort and Best Architecture (Multiple Use) CNBC Europe and Africa Property Awards.

Woods Bagot was selected by the visionaries behind Lalzit Bay due to the shared core values each company holds, namely to deliver a functional and operational development that will support cultural needs and create solutions which will work for the developer, the builders and ultimately the owners.

"The aim was to produce a masterplan and concept that provided a destination that fits comfortably within its natural environment," says Woods Bagot project architect Chris Savva. "A suburban approach would not be appropriate to the beach location, so the typical planning pre-conceptions were replaced with a philosophy of creating a natural, beach resort.

"The site is deep so the challenge was to bring as much value into the site and balance the beach frontage between residences and the hotel. The project phasing was also considered so that the resort can grow over time with minimal disruption."

Savva went on to explain the master plan calls for excellent beach frontage to both the hotel and front-line residences.

"We have arranged the site so that there is a dramatic entrance overlooking the central garden space," Savva added. "The garden space, with water features allows pedestrians to circulate free from traffic and gives all residences a garden view. Traffic is restricted to the perimeters, giving a clear separation. The front of the site houses the lower buildings so that the rear of the site retains stunning views. ...

"The region features long sandy beaches with sand dunes and these lead back into the flat agricultural plains. We wanted to reflect the regional landscape so the character of the architecture is all about seaside living. The sand dune concept runs through with the use of timbers, stone and glass. Sand is encouraged to penetrate the site and the landscaping features boardwalks and plants typically found around the beach."

Ecological and sustainable development is important to both Lalzit Bay Resort & Spa and Woods Bagot.

"Timber is a natural and renewable material and with the use of stone most of the building materials will be locally sourced," Savva says. "The landscaping will be of local native variety which will help in water conservation. Systems may include harvested water irrigation, solar thermal heating and passive methods such as timber window shuttering."

Ravin Maharajah, Sales Director from Lalzit Bay & Resort was keen to appoint a design architect who had some experience in this part of Europe and Woods Bagot was the perfect choice with previous projects in Turkey, Cyprus and Montenegro in recent years.

"The resort team at Woods Bagot provide bespoke designs suited to the particulars of each location, climate, culture and site landscaping," Maharajah says. "They have great experience in this sector and they understand the importance of both the whole 'Guest Experience' and the owner's development plans. This was the perfect recipe for our vision of Lalzit Bay Resort and Spa."

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