EDDEA’s project for the Port District proposes reclaiming the iron bridge as a viewpoint over the river

The Alfonso XIII Bridge – known as the iron bridge – will be restored and turned into a viewpoint linking the Port of Seville with the Dársena del Batán. Part of the project EDDEA is developing for the future Port Urban District (Distrito Urbano Portuario), the intervention seeks to preserve the historic and heritage value of this former industrial structure, which dates from the 19th century, while giving it a new purpose as public space.

Reached via a pedestrian walkway inside the structure, the viewpoint will offer views of the Guadalquivir river and its surroundings, becoming both a tourist attraction and a meeting place for local people. The initiative is part of wider efforts to revitalise and showcase the city’s industrial heritage, weaving historic spaces into the urban development of the Andalusian capital.

The transformation of the docks promoted by the Port Authority includes the long-awaited recovery of the iron bridge, an emblem of the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition which, since 2003, has stood unused on a plot at the end of Avenida de Las Razas. This presents a clear opportunity for the structure, which in this case would not need to be moved, although it would need restoration.

Indeed, the Port Authority and the Andalusian Regional Ministry of Culture and Heritage have an agreement to allocate 100,000 euros to engage the advisory services of the Andalusian Institute of Historical Heritage (IAPH) for a technical study that will assess the current state of the structure and define the work needed for its restoration and enhancement.

Using it as a viewpoint would involve reorganising the area, something already envisaged in the sketches for the port district, which propose joining the riverside promenade to the Parque Guadaíra in a green corridor. The metal structure stands in a natural setting that is in itself an asset for Seville’s port.

“We have an iron giant here, and we are looking at how to make the most of it – as a viewpoint or, why not, a restaurant, or as part of the Parque Guadaíra, or even letting water flow beneath it again so that it is a bridge once more; it is well prepared for that,” says José María de Cárdenas, founding partner of EDDEA.