CRB architects creates a residential building that is developed in three modules connected through two vertical circulation cores that bring together the common areas for residents with commercial premises. These modules respond to a distribution that takes advantage of the façade to provide views from each of the homes and improve accessibility to the interior of the building.
The project has numerous common areas strategically designed to promote interaction between residents, generating a route that merges public and private areas whose spatial experience is positive and interesting.
The decision was made to carry out the project in concrete, giving it the ability to reflect the passage of time and achieving its integration with the environment. This makes it possible to shape the curved characteristics of the building more easily, demonstrating the versatility of the volume and the ability to adapt to different requirements.
ONTO Tonalá by CRB arquitectos. Photograph by César Bejar.
Project description by CRB arquitectos
The Tonalá 15 project, located in Colonia Roma, in Mexico City, was born from the need to adapt to a triangular plot located at the intersection of Insurgentes, the longest avenue in Mexico City, and Tonalá Street. The inspiration comes from the idea of creating an element that stands out for its simplicity and materiality and at the same time integrated with the urban context.
The project actively seeks the revitalization of the urban area, aspiring to generate a positive impact on both the local economy and the quality of life of the community's inhabitants. This approach not only highlights the aesthetic and functional importance of architectural design, but also underlines its crucial role in creating environments that foster social connection, contributing to the sustainable development of urban areas and the increase in the added value it gives to the area.
The design takes advantage of the building's concrete structure to create a clean and simple grid on the facade on the sides facing the avenues, with floor-to-ceiling windows and tilting the columns on the ground floor towards the interior of the building, creating a gesture of openness towards the road. This creates a sober element that stands out for its architectural details and shape, as well as total transparency towards the interior.
The project also solves the layout on a very small plot, with a shape as complex as the triangle, managing to fit 4 homes between 50 m² and 54 m² per floor in a small area.
The main concepts that govern the design are: adaptation to the environment, simplicity, and functionality.
The building proposes a mixed use of housing, which includes short-term housing, medium-term stay housing, and permanent housing. This generates a wealth of coexistence for users due to the variety of uses. The main objective of the project's architecture is to improve the quality of life of the user, creating an environment in which people want to be, promoting interaction between the inhabitants and their surroundings. It is distinguished by its accessible design that guarantees usability for users of all abilities, promoting the well-being of the people who inhabit it.
On the ground floor, at the top of the building, a plaza is created that functions as a public space, generating a significant social impact, a transfer to the city, complying with the percentage of free area governed by the regulations, managing to concentrate and take advantage of the remaining space as much as possible for the building's floor plan.
The development of the project covers three modules, which are connected by two vertical circulation cores. On the ground floor, access to the building is through the central module, where the lobby and a rest area are located. In addition, two commercial premises are incorporated that face the main street.
The first two modules are made up of one apartment per floor, while the last is divided to house two homes. This layout was created taking advantage of the façade, with the purpose of providing views from each of the homes towards the two streets surrounding the project, as well as improving the accessibility of the building.
On the top floor, there is a space for a communal laundry room and two terrace areas that offer panoramic views of the city. The common spaces were strategically designed to promote interaction between the inhabitants, generating a route that begins in the public square, entering through the access on one side of the second module towards the lobby and then through the stairs and panoramic elevators, until reaching the terraces, ending on the green roof.
The basement only includes bicycle parking, seeking to discourage the use of cars, promoting public transport and sustainable mobility with zero emissions.
The lobby has a sober and elegant atmosphere, designed to welcome the user. In the homes, a warmer and more welcoming atmosphere is created.
The experience in the vertical circulations, both of the panoramic elevators and the stairs, is practical and with views of the street, achieving the minimum possible distance from the access to the door of each home, helping to optimize the living area. The stairs have a "ribbed" pigmented concrete texture on the ground floor and a black steel metal structure, which becomes a sculptural element on the following floors and creates landings that are observed on both sides of the building, generating natural and cross ventilation within the building.
Constructively, the low resistance of the soil on the site required the creation of a very deep foundation, a logistical challenge due to the maneuvers required on such a small plot, in addition to extensive research by the engineering team. The result is a structure consisting of foundation piles at a depth of 40 m; a casting system based on prefabricated formwork, reducing the footprint and streamlining construction processes, followed by a FIP seismic isolation system that supports a framework based on concrete columns with reticular slabs. Thanks to this, the work was completed in just 18 months, despite the complexity of the foundation.
In the choice of materials, the aim was to use those in their natural state, which would age together with the building and allow it to adapt to the environment over time. The integration of the building into the urban context makes it stand out for its details and simplicity, rather than for its scale.
The entire structure of the building is built using exposed concrete pigmented in an earth tone, which gives it this ability to age, allowing the project to gain more and more character over time. This material is also used for its malleability to shape all the curves of the project, thus demonstrating its versatility and ability to adapt to the demands of architectural design.
For the finishes, granite floors were chosen in public areas, as well as marble in private spaces. For the interior walls, painted plaster and wood panels were used. In the homes, the bathrooms were covered with this same marble, giving homogeneity through a short and congruent palette of materials.
For the interior design of the short and medium-term homes, we worked in collaboration with the M:A studio, to place the furniture and decoration that dialogue with the natural and warm finishes of the tower.
The sum of beige textures and colors stands out through textile details in chairs, lighting, wicker basketry, and national wood; The Mexican essence, a welcome letter to foreigners looking to stay in the heart of the Roma neighborhood.
The elegant, slim, black carpentry consists of a double-glazed system for thermal and acoustic insulation towards the interior of the building (Cortizo / Venster).
The building also has a rainwater collection system for an alternative hydraulic system, betting on sustainability in the project. In the same way, as a passive strategy, a "vertical oasis" was created thanks to the public plaza, the planters on the different floors, and the green roof, contributing to the generation of clean air for the city.
The building is recognizable in the area, a landmark that integrates with the city, elevating the urban aesthetic.
