Almaty’s identity comes from its mountains, steppes, and urban framework—grids, boulevards, parks, and courtyards—not individual buildings. The Eastern Gate extends this iconic landscape into a new, sustainable, human-centred quarter.

A continuous Steppe forms the heart of the district, linking green corridors and providing flexible spaces for walking, play, and cultural events. Native flora on fertile chernozem soil ensures ecological resilience, low maintenance, and seasonal variation. Key destinations include a reimagined caravanserai botanical garden and an oceanarium with retail, blending education, recreation, and architecture seamlessly into the landscape.

At the eastern edge, the Citadel forms a cultural and commercial hub with winding streets, small squares, and rooftop public spaces. The mosque, with its dome of intersecting cylinders and turquoise-glazed tiles, anchors the skyline and opens onto a generous public square. Both use sustainable, low-carbon materials—rammed earth and concrete—rooted in local tradition.

Inward-facing Courtyards with weaving paths based on the historical desire lines create humanscale, climate-resilient neighbourhoods, while winter gardens provide passive solar gain in winter and ventilated loggias in summer, enhancing comfort, usability, and energy efficiency.

Terraced Canyon streets frame commercial life, capture mountain views, and improve microclimates. Lanes connect Courtyards to Canyons, supporting live/work units, cafés, and smallscale cultural activity. Stone and clay façades balance thermal performance, sustainability, and a tactile, locally rooted aesthetic.

Passive design, district heating, photovoltaics, stormwater management, green roofs, and planted courtyards reduce energy demand, support biodiversity, and enhance urban comfort.

The Eastern Gate weaves Almaty’s natural and cultural heritage into a vibrant, resilient, and distinctly Kazakh urban quarter—a new gateway for work, living, and leisure.

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