The project won an invitation competition for developing four apartment blocks from 125 to 140 metres in length. The client chose our proposal for economic reasons: we managed to provide more saleable surface on the predefined urban set-up and a lower floor space index than all the other proposals.
The scheduled time for preparing plans and for resolving the building work was very tight: 650 apartments in less than eighteen months, which meant more than one apartment a day. The budget was also extremely limited: the aim was to build low-cost apartments and we had to bring the final production cost in at around 500 €/m2.
To make planning and construction simple and to allow for the use of such prefabricated elements as bathrooms, windows and facade panels the buildings were designed in module form.
Each building is divided into four identical modules, each with its own vertical communications core. There are 42 apartments in each module, varying from small 30 m² studios to 1.5-bedroom 60 m² apartments on four identical floors, and larger duplex apartments from 85 to 105 m² on the top two floors. The module is repeated four times with slight variations at the far ends of the building.
The facade is designed in two layers, the inner facade and outdoor space being formed by items such as glazed loggias, balconies, terraces and verandas. The second skin is constructed with pre-formed wooden panels, glass and metal rails. The structure of the apartments is such that each apartment gets at least one balcony and loggia that connects outdoor and indoor space. Like the modules, the facade layer is also repeated four times, but given the different geometry of the elements the repetition passes virtually unnoticed.
There are two parking levels beneath the site. The landscape provides a contrast to the geometrical facade through the use of gently curving rails and other features. It breaks up the sightlines through the complex and creates a difference between public and private space.