Among the materials, we highlight reinforced concrete as the protagonist due to its durability. Wood and steel are also part of the project. All this is combined with the green color of the gardens and patios. In relation to the distribution and the program, a central cube serves as a circulation element.
Description of project by REIMS 502
Living in a community and recovering public space for the new generations in search of densifying the city, have been the main reasons for sharing from our trench the great problem of urban growth. These concepts served as the basis for making this shared housing building a reality in the heart of the city of Querétaro.
Las Hadas has managed to materialize the first multi-family complex in a neighborhood for single-family use adjacent to the Historic Center of the city. This project managed to promote the initiative, now public, to change the use of land in the neighborhood, opening the way to the re-densification and reactivation of this old and central neighborhood of the city.
Having a narrow area - where a house used to be -, the length of the site was used to design the building on four levels, integrating units of 100, 200, and 300 m2 successively until reaching the crown of the building, where the last unit has double-height and enjoys beautiful views of the park and the urban environment.
We sought from the beginning to make a building that was by its urban and socioeconomic context, for this reason, we chose a spatial distribution that stood out with a rhythmic, logical, and simple architectural system that would allow for a cost-efficient building rich in atmospheric possibilities of space.
Our premise was based on generating open and wide spaces without affecting the privacy of each one of the inhabitants, for which we started from the use of latticework on the lower levels, and the integration of terraces and planters on the façade that function as a filter between the street and the departments.
The material palette was defined with 3 unique elements, the protagonist being the use of apparent concrete as the final coating, chosen for its durability and timeless appearance whose patina allows the work to age properly. This gray canvas is intervened with subtle accents of wood and steel, in addition to the multiple green settings generated by the interior patios and gardens.
The distribution and architectural program are developed from a central light cube, which serves as a skylight, vent, and central circulation node to articulate the access of the 3 housing units. This central courtyard houses an olive tree that was planted in celebration of a new life for the property and the neighborhood with the triumph of the change in density and land use.
Finally, each one of the departments has its own identity, and it is in this assembly work that it is possible to endow each one of the departments with peculiar visual finishes, interior patios with vast vegetation and open views towards the city, through terraces and balconies that seek highlight at every opportunity the benefits of living in a community in the middle of the city.
