CrystalZoo designed a modern building of unique plant, which will not rise in height to avoid attention, presenting the program in trapezoidal spaces opening at one end to the main central room and on the opposite frame views of trees around it.
Descripction of the project.
We’re going to move away from the town centre of La Nucía to the new residential areas that require the creation of public spaces to take local services to the people.
The project for the new municipal satellite office was commissioned by the Regional Valencia Government with the objective of decentralising the local government and taking services to the citizens. The budget for this project was €253,222 and was part of the larger amount of €3.4 million allocated by the Regional Valencia Government to the town of La Nucía for eight different projects.
The project developed for the new installation took into account that it was for a satellite town hall and proposed a space, in reality a representative pavilion, that is extensive and designed to streamline the interaction between the government and the citizen.
The plot of land allocated for this new public installation is located in the residential area of Bello Horizante, one of the new town neighbourhoods. It’s a dry zone, completely surrounded by low dwellings where the new project complements the new public installations with a new garden and some small provisions for sport in the form of a football and basketball court.
The unique feature of the pavilion is its eye-catching façade, where ceramics are once again the protagonist. The façade represents the town council and attracts the citizen’s attention. It forms a continuous covering that wraps around the whole uneven structure that covers vertical and horizontal surfaces, that is to say the walls and roof, with a mosaic of hexagonal tiles made of enamelled ceramic.
The choice of colour highlights the intention to make it stand out, featuring a vibrant range of green tones. Colour is also used to reinforce the immediate surroundings of the building, a site with a slight slope covered with grass, which suggests a luxuriant hill full of life. This colour choice is in stark contrast to the more ochre tones of its surroundings. The pavement around the pavilion is in a light tone which, in turn, is the dominant colour of the interior. The Crystalzoo project seeks to be different from the other official buildings in an attempt to create an architecture which the citizens of the area perceive as approachable, casual and friendly.
The scale of the exterior may give the impression of a small picturesque place. The final image of the interior space of the pavilion is far from that. Access to the concrete structure is through one of the arms that folds out towards the exterior, a kind of vestibule, which leads to an extensive space which, thanks to its irregular shape, allows for several different areas in each of its corners.
It’s a one floor 165 sqm building formed by a series of trapezoids arranged in an irregular shape, almost a star, connected by their longest side with a very large central space. The layout of the trapezoids allows for a circular organisation of the interior, so that the whole of the space can be seen from one point: the customer service desk, behind which there is a small office for internal use. Small lavatories are located across from the office and the rest of the space is dedicated to reading carrels with computers, where the visitor can make enquiries or read while waiting to be served.
The interior finishes are simple. The inside surface of the concrete walls is covered with stucco and lamps are hung above, accentuating the lines where the sloped roof meets the walls, making the space feel bigger. This, along with the polished concrete ceiling and floor make the interior a bright simple space. A splash of colour is added by the bookshelves and windows at the ends of the arms of the star which have views of the landscape beyond the plot of land.
Text.- José Juan Barba.
CREDITS. TECHNICAL DATA.-
Architecs.- CrystalZoo - José Luis Campos Rosique-socioFAD 04027.
Collaborators.- Juan Parra, Francisco T. Espí, Ivon O. Fernández.
Program.- Administrative.
Area.- 165 sqm.
Project date.- 2013.
