SOMOS.arquitectos proposal for 80 social housing units EMVS in Vallecas.
The competition site is a square plot with its diagonal facing south, thus conferring the exterior walls optimal sunlight exposure. Still, the surrounding urban conditions force us to incorporate some differences in their design: the southeast façade turns over to a green corridor conceived as an urban scaled park, and the southwest façade faces a road under the usual noise and atmospheric disturbances that might alter living conditions inside the apartments.
Furthermore, the volumes already proposed in the urban planning layout lead us to a very rigid design, unable to cope with the already explained urban conditions. We propose to break down the original solid in order to dissolve its corner with a solution moving away from the typical chamfer. Right at that spot we will place the vertical communications core which "climbs" all the way up through the cracks and gaps between the different volumes composing the building.
In turn, both facades are solved strengthening the advantages of each orientation:
- to the green corridor, each apartment opens up its windows looking for views and sunlight.
- to the road, the access loggia is pushed outward to act as an acoustic isolating cushion. In addition, the built block is raised one floor, eliminating ground floor level apartments and allowing pedestrian and wheeled access to the plot, creating a visual connection between the inner court and the street.
A last movement defines the final solution. As of mid-level, when the building has reached a considerable height, the apartment units change their position, thus getting:
- sun protection from the green corridor. The southeast facade has almost no obstacles to sunlight, so after its fifth floor, it needs to look for the shade.
- visual connection with the surrounding areas. Once elevated, we are far enough from the road so as to open the windows to catch the sunlight, which in this case was obstructed by a building with identical characteristics across the road.
The competition site is a square plot with its diagonal facing south, thus conferring the exterior walls optimal sunlight exposure. Still, the surrounding urban conditions force us to incorporate some differences in their design: the southeast façade turns over to a green corridor conceived as an urban scaled park, and the southwest façade faces a road under the usual noise and atmospheric disturbances that might alter living conditions inside the apartments.
Furthermore, the volumes already proposed in the urban planning layout lead us to a very rigid design, unable to cope with the already explained urban conditions. We propose to break down the original solid in order to dissolve its corner with a solution moving away from the typical chamfer. Right at that spot we will place the vertical communications core which "climbs" all the way up through the cracks and gaps between the different volumes composing the building.
In turn, both facades are solved strengthening the advantages of each orientation:
- to the green corridor, each apartment opens up its windows looking for views and sunlight.
- to the road, the access loggia is pushed outward to act as an acoustic isolating cushion. In addition, the built block is raised one floor, eliminating ground floor level apartments and allowing pedestrian and wheeled access to the plot, creating a visual connection between the inner court and the street.
A last movement defines the final solution. As of mid-level, when the building has reached a considerable height, the apartment units change their position, thus getting:
- sun protection from the green corridor. The southeast facade has almost no obstacles to sunlight, so after its fifth floor, it needs to look for the shade.
- visual connection with the surrounding areas. Once elevated, we are far enough from the road so as to open the windows to catch the sunlight, which in this case was obstructed by a building with identical characteristics across the road.
