More than a grid

Large scale city district organized along an orthogonal street grid is the context of our site. The area is undergoing an accelerated programmatic and spatial transformation. A mono-functional work/office district is turning into a mix-use work-residential city neighborhood.

Fragmented ownership pattern in the area leads to a similarly fragmented spatial transformation, predominantly driven by private initiatives. In the framework of urban grid structure that effortlessly secures the spatial coherence of the future district, every project is challenged at delivering autonomous spatial and programmatic qualities. These qualities secure the critical level of self-sufficiency in case of an incomplete or prolonged transformation.

To respond to the task, we envision an adaptable spatial transformation framework for testing a number of scenarios that take on different ambitions, densities and building typologies of a future residential quarter.

A cluster of orthogonal urban blocks is proposed for the site. It downscales the main large-scale street grid and increases the length of the building perimeter. While formulating a solid urban front towards the outside of the site, the blocks stay semi-open toward the inside of the quarter. They let their courtyards interweave with each other. The courtyards mix into a diverse spatial maze, consisting of a collection of public, semi-public and private open spaces. Kept car-free by the access to the main parking facilities being enabled from the site’s outer edge, such space inspires contact among its inhabitants, making them feel that they belong to a greater whole. The ambient is further enriched by green and water elements, diverse residential typologies, as well as with strategically positioned communal facilities and commercial uses. The result is a genuinely inclusive community that offers space to a variety of future residents to live and thrive.