A+T Reseach Group. Why Density - PDF [PDF]

Zitiervorschau

WHY DENSITY? Debunking the myth of the cubic watermelon research group 2

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CHAPTER INDEX

a.

WHAT IS DENSITY? ............................................................................... 6-23

b.

THE INTENSE DENSITY ....................................................................... 24-51

c.

DENSITY AND URBAN FORMS .......................................................... 52-93

d.

THE FRIENDLY DENSITY ................................................................... 94-127

e.

THE CLEAN DENSITY ...................................................................... 128-137

+

THE DESIRABLE DENSITY ............................................................... 138-141

© a+t architecture publishers No part of this publication, including the cover, may be reproduced or transmitted without the express authorization in writing of the publisher. a+t architecture publishers. Calle General Álava, 15 2°A. 01005 Vitoria-Gasteiz. Spain

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WHAT IS DENSITY?

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01. The cubic watermelon

What is density? This is a very simple question at first sight that makes us wonder about for years. Before trying to answer this question, let’s see what density is not. Very often, when you hear about density and city you associate with images from Hong Kong or Benidorm, -the hyperdense city, ¬with skyscrapers put together and small apartments inside. It reminds us the story of the cubic watermelon. Around the 80s, a farmer, on the island of Shikoku, south of Japan came up with the idea of making a cube-shaped watermelon which could easily be packed and stored. He created a cubic mould, where each seed would grow adopting a cubic form. The result was a wonderful cubic watermelon, which remained stable and it was easier to be stored, packed and shipped. 8

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You can do this with watermelons, but you can’t do it with buildings.

If you do that with buildings, it won’t be for the sake of density, it

Density has nothing to do with the volumetric exploitation of the

will be for the sake of speculation and the result will be the slums,

city. It is not a question of bringing in as many homes as possible.

as history has proved already.

It is not a question of reducing voids. 10

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02. Why density matters? 01 CO2 EMISSIONS

In terms of carbon emissions, it has been proved that the dispersed city, consisting of individual houses, is a bigger source of carbon emissions than the compact city, not only for the energy required for each house, but also for the emissions derived from the individual transport, for public transport is unaffordable because

02 INFRASTRUCTURES

the population does not reach a critical mass. Secondly, road surfaces increase proportionally to the dispersion and convert rural land into asphalt landscapes. The proportion of asphalt needed to serve individual houses is of 1 m2 of road per 1 m2 of gross floor area, and the tons of material needed for road constructions and buildings could achieve in many cases the same proportion of 1:1. Finally, the compact city promotes interaction between citizens and uses, not only as neighbors but at a bigger scale, sharing facilities, amenities, and public spaces. 12

03 COMMUNITY 13

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03. What density means to us

We tried to put in relation the architectural project with a certain way of living, that which promotes:

. the compact city instead of the dispersed city, . the collective housing instead o the individual houses and . the interaction of functions

instead of the segregation of uses. After many years analyzing projects, we are beginning to define what density means to We began to be interested in density by the end of the 90s. In architecture publications, housing projects used to be shown as objects, isolated from the surroundings, with any data related to the inputs they contribute to the city. We believed that housing projects should be shown in relation with the type of city they proposed, because they aren’t just buildings but part of a given city. 14

us and we think that it based on the interaction between three elements: Agents, fluxes and territory. 15

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04. Who are the agents of density? THE OWNER OF THE LAND

THE RULER

On the opposite page we have the conventional agents of the city: The owner of the land, the ruler, the urban planner, the devel-

THE URBAN PLANNER

THE DEVELOPER

oper, the architect and the citizen. They all have had their specific aims and performances over the history. But, as we will see through the coming pages, the construction of a compact city requires that these traditional agents turn into more complex entities in such a way that individual aims –usually related to the dispersed city, are been transformed into communal goals, capable to attain consensus and the common good In that respect, the dense city requires public-private partnership to carry out the vision, participation of citizens at decisionmaking levels, and a good dose of tolerance and social concern. 16

THE ARCHITECT

THE CITIZEN 17

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05. Which are the fluxes of density?

. Natural fluxes are part of the ecosystem of the territory. They might be specific, as in the case of water courses or the prevailing winds, or general flows, such as light or air.

. Virtual fluxes are decision flows,

which occur outside the physical territory yet affect the physical evolution of the territory as is the case of political or economic decisions.

. Human fluxes are related to the

When we talk about the city or any other geographical space, we identify the elements as two superimposed layers: fluxes and territory. We recognize three types of fluxes: natural fluxes, virtual fluxes and human fluxes. 18

movility of people or goods and these are constrained by natural and virtual flows. 19

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NATURAL FLUXES

VIRTUAL FLUXES

They are those which affect the ecosystem of a territory, such as

They are streams of decisions produced by the agents. There

watercourses, air or sunlight

are economical, political and social decision fluxes

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HUMAN FLUXES

FLUXES AND TERRITORY

They are the flows of individuals and goods which describe

The combination of fluxes divides the territory into solids

human activity

and voids

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THE INTENSE DENSITY The Renault site case-study

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01. Introduction

This is the case of the former site of the Renault carmanufacturer, in the municipality of Boulogne-Billancourt, 7 km east from the Parisian Champs Elysées. In 1992 the Renault car factory discontinued production and liberated a strategic area of 74 hectares, attracting a great deal of land developers. Here, an original combination of public and private interests led to the transformation of the conventional agents of the city, who acted in the right direction to create, together, a vibrant city fragment. 26

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02. The agents

The time has come to propose a new way of living taking into account demands concerning the environment and social integration which citizens are increasingly willing to assume.

The closure of the Renault factories triggered a process which

how many metres of build area can be offered to the future

took 14 years to see the construction of the first building in the

developers, what percentage of land will be reserved for free

new plan and whose total estimated time scale is 20 years.

space, what will be the prevailing use and what degree of

The first stage in this process was for the councils and

mixed use and social integration will be allowed.

the landowner to come together to form a public-private

The outcome is a large scale urban plan which allows the

partnership.

landowners to sell the land to a company made up of 4 large

In 1995 the election of a new mayor for Boulogne-Billancourt

property developers.

marks the real start of the project, with a political partnership,

Based on the land sales and the definition of the master

at all levels of the state, highly favourable to implement an

plan, the group of governing bodies brings in a new agent,

ambitious city project.

the project manager, who will be responsible for setting up a

The landowner and the group of governing bodies hire an

public-private partnership which is to manage and oversee the

urban architect, Bruno Fortier, to lay down the ground rules:

process from 2003 until its completion.

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02 THE OWNER OF THE LAND THE RULER THE DEVELOPER

The landowner, the carmakers Renault, sells the land to the development company DBS, according to the plan drawn up by Bruno Fortier, which guarantees a one million square metre build area and releasing the required public spaces to the council. One of the agents who stands out in this first operation is Jean Pierre Fourcade. Elected Mayor of Boulogne-Billancourt in 1995, Fourcade is a professional politician who has been Minister of both Finance and Infrastructures in successive right-wing governments since the 70s. He knows how the State works and he becomes Mayor while also being Senator for the province. Jacques Chirac has just become President of the Republic and Alain Juppé is Prime Minister, both members of the same party as Fourcade. 30

FOURCADE

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02 THE MANAGER THE URBAN PLANNER

The manager of this project has also been one of the most significant agents: Jean-Louis Subileau, whose profile lies between the politician, the economist and the town planner who creates and manages, at the governor’s request, a public-private partnership, in which investment funds hold a stake, which controls all the urban and economic development of the operation. The governor, through this PPP, does not only promote and manage the public spaces and amenities, but also coordinates-controls the design and construction of all the architectural projects. The project manager, through a public tender contest, selects two studies by architects-town planners: Patrick Chavannes and Christian Devilliers, who are years later joined by Jean Nouvel for the design of the isle. Each of the three, in collaboration with a landscape architect, is commissioned to design one of the three areas into which the project site has been divided. 32

SUBILEAU

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02 THE ARCHITECT THE CITIZEN

The design of each of these large blocks is seen as an urban project and is subject to a public tender contest. The winning bidder becomes the coordinator of all the buildings in the block, which in turn are the outcome of individual tender contests. Citizens are present through 16 associations from the beginning of the design and regulation process. The Coordinating Commission created in 1995 is the information exchange platform where different citizen associations take part in different working groups. 34

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03. Fluxes on the Renault site

When a decision is made concerning the density of a plan,

In this segment of recycled land the agents embody a complete vision of the type of city they desire. The new segment differs from the pre-existing segment in the setting comprising large social housing estates put up in the 70s. Now the fabric is laid out in large open blocks, the so-called Macrolots. How are they formed? Here is where fluxes come into play. As we have already mentioned, virtual fluxes are currents of decision brought about by the agents. The combination of political and economic fluxes also shapes the outdoor space of the blocks. Either a shared city or a closed city will be built, according to the balance between both fluxes. The relationship between public outdoor space and private outdoor space will determine the success of the compact city. When there is a lack of balance in this relationship and there is a large amount of private space, we get closed blocks, with isolated spaces with high-cost maintenance for the owners, which eliminates the option for large recreational areas or small spaces for socializing. Lastly, the circulation fluxes, which reflect the requirements of human activity, finish off the process of shaping the territory. 36

potential economic value is generated based on the building options which are granted to the land. This potential shapes the built form virtually with the aim to maximize profit. The main decisions which shape the form are:

. the assigned floor area ratio (build area / plot area) . maximum permitted build height . percentage of floor area occupied. 37

03 NATURAL FLUXES WATERCOURSES, AIR AND SUNLIGHT

The river pulls the heart of the new neighbourhood towards its bank. The most vibrant hub of activity is concentrated alongside the dockland area. The flow of sunlight requires separation and setting distances between the buildings for light to get to each dwelling. The air flows more easily through dwellings which face in two directions. Lastly the climatic structure imposes sustainable development and determines that the construction uses renewable energy sources and manages rainwater and seasonal flooding. 38

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03 VIRTUAL FLUXES ECONOMIC FLUXES

Apart from density there are other design decisions which increase or decrease the value of the dwelling. For instance, when we open up the block and remove interior courtyards and constricted views, this enhances the design and increases the potential value of each dwelling. On the other hand, if exterior views are sacrificed in favour of a greater use of the floor area, the value of the block as a whole increases yet the value of each dwelling decreases. In the case of the former Renault site, we can see how the floor area ratio of each plot is about 3.5, which means that 3.5 m2 can be built for each 1 m2 of plot area. The average permitted build height is 8 storeys and the area occupied is 50%. 40

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03 VIRTUAL FLUXES POLITICAL FLUXES

There is a political decision to provide a large quantity of housing, part of this subsidized, mixed with amenities, services, office space and ample green areas. The flow of political decisions is what models the mixed city. In each macrolot, housing makes up between 30% and 70% of the build area, of which 30% is social housing. 42

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FACILITIES

HOUSING

OFFICES

RETAIL

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03 VIRTUAL FLUXES POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC FLUXES

In this case of Renault site, the consensus released quite an open city. The pattern of the urban block is a big piece of land, about 1 to 1.5 hectares, the so-called Macrolot, where street fronts break up to let inner courtyards reach the street The interior of these blocks is thus landscaped and public. They are closed at night, to prevent conflict and remain open during the day. As we said previously, this open space represents the 50% of the macrolot surface, and remains in public hands. 46

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03 HUMAN FLUXES CIRCULATIONS The design of the road network balances the flow of automobiles with that of pedestrians and light vehicles (bicycles, skates, wheelchairs...) Automobiles are banned from entering the interior of the large blocks while pedestrians and light vehicles can cross through them as a shortcut.

PEDESTRIAN NETWORK

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ROAD NETWORK

MACROLOT PERMEABILITY

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TOTAL NATURAL, VIRTUAL AND HUMAN FLUXES

This drawing summarizes the look of intense density. The result of this master plan is a sector where: Gross density: 75 dwellings/ha Net density 304 dwellings/ha In terms of floor area ratio, that is the intensity of the place when you sum up all the uses included: 1.5 for the master plan 3.5 for the macrolot 50% covered area 50

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DENSITY AND URBAN FORMS

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How to manage Density in the urban block? In the scales of Density, from the territorial, to the dwelling scale, the intermediate scale, that of the urban block, is the main field of activity of the architect. No longer dwellings per hectare, as an indicator of Density We have given-up considering Density as a quotient between the number-of-dwellings by the surface-area of the plot. For us, this has been an important change in our mind. Along building-life cycle, different movements can be produced between residential-uses and offices or commercial-spaces. Use can change. This should be possible and desirable. At the image, you can see volumes with different colours, that mean different uses, mixed in a generic plot. 54

We put Floor Area Ratio, better than dwellings or population, as a measure of Density. Floor Area Ratio, FAR is a more balanced indicator of Density. It’s more abstract and generic. Density shouldn’t be affected by debates on uses or zoning. 55

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01. Urban forms 1

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TRADITIONAL URBAN FORMS

SELECTED URBAN BLOCKS

Analyzed by a+t research group

Published in a+t Density series

Trying to obtain a more accurate picture of Density, we’ve

of the most significant urban blocks published by a+t during

developed an analysis comparing nine traditional forms with six

the last fifteen years.

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02. Traditional urban forms Here you can see nine traditional ways of filling a void with a solid. These nine, are theoretical examples, and not real cases.

01. SINGLE FAMILY HOUSES FAR 0.50 COV 0.25 HEI 2.00

02. ROWHOUSES FAR 1.20 COV 0.60 HEI 2.00

03. POINT BUILDINGS FAR 1.44 COV 0.24 HEI 6.00

04. DOUBLE SLAB FAR 1.80 COV 0.30 HEI 6.00

05. SLAB FAR 1.65 COV 0.15 HEI 11.00

06. CLOSED URBAN BLOCK FAR 3.84 COV 0.64 HEI 6.00

07. URBAN BLOCK WITH TOWERS FAR 3.10 COV 0.88 HEI 3.52

08. PLINTH WITH TOWERS FAR 1.16 COV 0.36 HEI 3.22

09. TOWER FAR 1.89 COV 0.09 HEI 21.00

All the plots have one hectare. We think that these nine examples summarize the range of possibilities of stacking floor-area on a plot. They are abstract forms and they try to cover different situations of living in a city.

FAR: Floor Area Ratio: The Gross Floor Area divided by the total area of the plot. The units are sqm per sqm. COV: Coverage: It shows the relationship between built and non-built space on the plot. The units are sqm per sqm. HEI: Height index: It is not the height of the building or the block. It measures the relation between Floor Area Ratio and Coverage. It is a sort of average height. It has no units*.

*Some of these concepts coincide with the research made by Meta Berghauser Pont and Per Haupt in Spacematrix. Space, Density and Urban Form. (NAi 2010). 58

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03. Selected urban blocks 10. MIRADOR FAR 1.60 COV 0.11 HEI 15.02

11. RENAULT SITE FAR 3.50 COV 0.50 HEI 8.00

12. DE LANDTONG FAR 3.08 COV 0.41 HEI 7.19

13. SHINONOME FAR 4.18 COV 0.34 HEI 12.41

The selection of the six significant urban blocks has been made taking into account the densification of the neighborhood and other factors that increase the quality of Density, called performances, which are explained in the coming pages. The selection we’ve made can be grouped into four categories: PERFORATED BLOCK: the Mirador building in Madrid, by MVRDV and Blanca Lleó. MACROLOT OR SUPER-PLOT: the Renault site in Paris, by Patrick Chavannes and Christian Devilliers HYBRID BLOCKS: De Landtong in Rotterdam, by Architekten Cie, Frits van Dongen and Shinonome in Tokyo, by Riken Yamamoto, Kengo Kuma, Toyo Ito and others. MEGAFORMS: Schots 1 and 2 CiBoGa in Groningen,

14. SCHOTS 1 AND 2 CIBOGA FAR 1.19 COV 0.34 HEI 3.50

15. 8 HOUSE FAR 2.51 COV 0.46 HEI 5.41

Netherlands, by S333 and 8 House in Copenhagen, by BIG. 60

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0310 THE PERFORATED BLOCK MIRADOR BUILDING MVRDV & BLANCA LLEÓ Sanchinarro (Madrid, Spain)

Located in Madrid’s Sanchinarro extension, we think that here the authors asked themselves: How to subvert the rigidity of the given Master Plan, in which all plots are more or less traditional perimeter blocks? It is, thus, a joke of subversion by converting the traditional perimeter block into a vertical block with a perforation in its centre. This block became an icon of a public residential building, but many important aspects were put aside, such as circulations, dimensions of the apartments and the open space of the plot. This project is published in the book HoCo (a+t Density series) 62

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THE PERFORATED BLOCK FLOOR AREA RATIO is the same as the plots with Perimeter Block of the Sanchinarro Master Plan. COVERAGE has a very small value, it could be assimilated to the Tower model included in the traditional forms selection. The HEI indicator diminishes by the great hole in the middle. FAR=1.60 - COV=0.11 - HEI=15.02

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0311 THE MACROLOT RENAULT SITE PATRICK CHAVANNES, CHRISTIAN DEVILLIERS Paris (France)

The Renault site is based on a concept from the eighties’: the open block. It associated two opposed principles: the freedom of the individual solidform and the strictness of the grid. The open block is excavated and divided into voids and solids which are regulated by specific, but open rules. It is a way between urbanism and architecture. This project is published in the book DENSITY IS HOME (a+t Density series). 66

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0311

THE MACROLOT FAR is bigger in macrolot than in any other of our selected European city blocks and COVERAGE is in a medium range. FAR=3.50 - COV=0.50 - HEI=8.00

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0312 THE HYBRID BLOCK DE LANDTONG ARCHITEKTEN CIE, FRITS VAN DONGEN Rotterdam (The Netherlands)

De Landtong and Shinonome maintain the traditional relationship with the street, reaching the limits of the plot. These mixture of slabs, towers and row houses avoid the problems of the perimeter-city-block, which are: · Difficult configuration of the corners, · Less daylight in inner facades and · Closed and un-accessible interior spaces. The difference between both is in the character of their interior open spaces. In De Landtong are private, in Shinonome public. Orientation also has to do with the quality of Density: Here, three slabs slope-down towards the south to gain daylight in the courtyards. This is an intense combination of the best of two worlds: low and high density. This project is published in the a+t n.12 HOUSING AND FLEXIBILITY I. 70

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0312

THE HYBRID BLOCK In The Netherlands, it’s not normal to find 3.08 FAR and a COVERAGE of 0.41. FAR=3.08 - COV=0.41 - HEI=7.19

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0313 THE HYBRID BLOCK SHINONOME RIKEN YAMAMOTO, KENGO KUMA TOYO ITO AND OTHERS Tokyo (Japan)

Shinonome follows a strategy to accomplish the need for subsidized housing with a rich variety of types and, at the same time, diverts the attention from the five private speculative towers located beside. There is a big proportion of live-work units, a very demanded typology in Japan. Great intensity, but, however, the interior public space remains in proportions, producing a balsamic effect, pointing-up that density is a subjective concept, shaped by other factors. This project is published in the book Dbook (a+t Density series). 74

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THE HYBRID BLOCK The most significant value is a FAR of 4.18. The COVERAGE is only 0.34, because there is a lot of public space at the interior of the block. FAR=4.18 - COV=0.34 - HEI=12.41

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0314 THE MEGAFORM SCHOTS 1 AND 2 CIBOGA S333 Groningen (The Netherlands)

Let’s compare the next two examples: CiBoGa and 8 House. We consider them as two megaforms, which try to go beyond the rigid formalization of the traditional urban block. With geometrical operations, two basic volumes have been elongated, twisted and folded to obtain a megaform. These two blocks are located in a regained area in the centre of Groningen. The absence of a predominant grid enhances the opportunity to create an urban event, which can act as a node for the area. These hybrid blocks performs not only with its solids, but also with its voids. This project is published in a+t n.22 DENSITY IV. 78

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THE MEGAFORM Considering FAR index, in this case it is more important the concept of Diversity, than that of Intensity. CiBoGa has a small Coverage index, due to the big importance of open spaces FAR=1.19 - COV=0.34 - HEI=3.50

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0315 THE MEGAFORM 8 HOUSE BIG ARCHITECTS Copenhagen (Denmark)

The 8 House is located in Orestad South, at the end of this new territory incorporated to the city of Copenhagen, with nice views of the Kalfebod Commons. Its mission is to create a big pole of attraction in the area. In order to gather enough population and produce a lively city ambiance, the whole complex, like CiBoGa and De Landtong, is composed by putting-together two urban blocks, a decision against the prevailing master plan. Till now, this is the largest privatehousing-development ever undertaken in Denmark. It is also a way between urbanism and architecture. This project is published in the book DENSITY IS HOME (a+t Density series). 82

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THE MEGAFORM FAR maintains a medium range situation. The big surface of courtyards decreases also the COVERAGE of the plot. FAR=2.51 - COV=0.46 - HEI=5.41

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04. Traditional forms versus selected blocks

FAR 5,0

4,5

4,0

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3,5 07 3,0

2,5

2,0

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04 05 03

1,5

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08 1,0 01

0,5

COV 0

This graph shows two axes. Horizontal axis shows the

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0,9

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TRADITIONAL FORMS

COVERAGE index, and the vertical axis shows the FAR index. In the first case the gradation is from zero to one, and in the second, from zero to five. Among the axes there are the nine traditional urban forms, with

01. SINGLE FAMILY HOUSES FAR 0.50 COV 0.25 HEI 2.00

02. ROWHOUSES FAR 1.20 COV 0.60 HEI 2.00

03. POINT BUILDINGS FAR 1.44 COV 0.24 HEI 6.00

04. DOUBLE SLAB FAR 1.80 COV 0.30 HEI 6.00

05. SLAB FAR 1.65 COV 0.15 HEI 11,00

06. CLOSED URBAN BLOCK FAR 3.84 COV 0.64 HEI 6,00

07. URBAN BLOCK WITH TOWERS FAR 3.10 COV 0.88 HEI 3.52

08. PLINTH WITH TOWERS FAR 1.16 COV 0.36 HEI 3.22

09. TOWER FAR 1.89 COV 0.09 HEI 21.00

the value of their indicators. In terms of intensity, two urban forms show-off their power at the upper right corner. They are the perimeter block and the singular volumes over a base. These are examples of an intense use of the land. All the rest of urban forms are under 2.00 FAR with a small COVERAGE index. The exception is the example of the typical British suburbia, number 2, row houses with no ending, which is not as dispersed as the single family scheme, but not as concentrated as the strip or slab solutions. 86

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One thing is clear: if we want to have a wise grading of solids and voids to enrich the urban form, we would need empty spaces within the plot. That means coverage index has to be smaller than 0.50.

FAR 5,0

4,5 13 4,0 11

3,5 12 3,0 15

2,5

2,0 10 1,5 14 1,0

0,5

This graph shows the precise relationship between the three

COV 0

0,1

0,2

0,3

0,4

0,5

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0,8

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indicators of density: FAR, COVERAGE and HEI. All the blue selected blocks fulfill this rule. CiBoGa (14) is the smaller example from the point of view of FAR and with less COV index, because of the richness and gradation of public and semi-public spaces and the strong desire for physical contact-

SELECTED BLOCKS 10. MIRADOR FAR 1.60 COV 0.11 HEI 15.02

11. RENAULT SITE FAR 3.50 COV 0.50 HEI 8.00

12. DE LANDTONG FAR 3.08 COV 0.41 HEI 7.19

13. SHINONOME FAR 4.18 COV 0.34 HEI 12,41

14. SCHOTS 1 and 2 CIBOGA FAR 1.19 COV 0.34 HEI 3.50

15. 8 HOUSE FAR 2.51 COV 0.46 HEI 5.41

with-the-ground of the Dutch population. Shinonome (13) is the most intense block and reveals the strength of this type of development. It has the highest FAR ratio, 4.18. Standard European ratios sound ridiculous when they are compared to these types of agglomerations of Asian cities, which maintain a more complicated relationship with density. We can see three sloping lines which establish neat pointed areas of low, medium and high rise. High density not always means high rise. Many examples support this idea and Macrolot (11) and 8 House (15) are two of them. 88

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FAR HIGH RISE

5,0

MEDIUM RISE

MEDIUM RISE

4,5 13 4,0

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MEDIUM RISE

Which density do we prefer? The range of values that is worthwhile are the well balanced urban blocks placed in the centre of the graph. In order to

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create urban life and intensity we think that FAR should be

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balanced around 3.00, this of course at the plot level. As a

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general rule, we proclaim the advantages of the compact city.

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We try even to avoid publishing single family houses. So, our 04

interest focuses on the intermediate area of Medium-Rise. There is a golden triangle between 8 House (15) De Landtong

03 14 08

(12) and the Renault Macrolot (13), that joins together the best qualities of the European block: dense, compact, mixed, intense and diverse. 90

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11. RENAULT MACROLOT FAR 3.50 COV 0.50 HEI 8.00

MEDIUM RISE

06 11 07

12

15

04 03 14 08

15. 8 HOUSE FAR 2.51 COV 0.46 HEI 5.41

Two points of this triangle are good examples of two intense ways of living in Europe: Nordic and Mediterranean. They are the Macrolot (11), near the high line, a good example for Southern countries, and the 8 House (15), well balanced in the centre of the graph, which does the same for Northern countries, but with Mediterranean touches as we’ll see. 92

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THE FRIENDLY DENSITY

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01. Introduction

There are some characteristics of density not measurable in terms of figures and ratios, but with the same importance. These are

HARD PERFORMANCES are referred to physical aspects of

the performances that define the

the built environment, such as accesses, circulations, types of

Quality of Density.

It has to do with architecture.

We can classify them into two

such as privacy, flexibility, spaciousness, relation with nature

categories: hard and soft.

atmosphere and the perception of the space.

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dwellings, orientation, communal spaces and exterior spaces... SOFT PERFORMANCES imply more subjective conditions, and safety and security... It has to do with sensations, the 97

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02. Hard performances

In order to identify the performances of an urban form we shall use the 8 House in Copenhagen by BIG Architects which, as we observed in the previous chapter, is a good example to promote the compact active city. The hard performances of the building have their origins in the design process. These performances are architectural variables chosen by the author once the urban criteria laid out in the master plan have been accepted. These are decisions which have profound implications on the typology and functioning of the building. 98

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02 ACCESSES VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL Staircases, elevators and streets

The diversity of typologies produces the variety of accesses, ranging from the open galleries or streets to the vertical cores with stairs and lifts. Most vertical cores are located on the façades facing the street so as to attain more active building performance regarding the setting.

Every blue-vertical-arrow shows the location of an staircase and elevator and each circle the access to the streets 100

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02 CIRCULATIONS THE MOEBIUS STRIP Street in the sky

This is a walkable and cyclable block in the sense you can promenade following the public path which goes up and down around the whole building. This round performs a leading role in the design of the building. This building reminds us the stepped streets of the Spanish village of Frigiliana in Malaga, where Bjarke Ingels went once on holidays. The idea is a landscape subversion by the introduction of an artificial mountain* in the flat plain of Copenhagen. The slope is over the norm in Denmark, but authorities accepted the solution because it has rest-areas beside.

*Previously BIG and JDS, did that with the Mountain Building also in Orestad.

The horizontal circulations are open 102

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02 TYPES OF DWELLINGS THE DIVERSITY OF A NEIGHBOURHOOD Terraced houses, apartments and penthouses

A TERRACED HOUSES

B APARTMENTS

C PENTHOUSE

It seeks the integration of all possible types in a block, to achieve the vitality of a neighbourhood. The aim is to get diversity. Three different typologies on a commercial, offices and nursery base have been superimposed: A Terrace houses on the bottom circulation double-ring B Apartments in the middle and C Penthouses on the upper circulation double-ring

Terraced houses on the bottom circulation double-ring Apartments in the middle Penthouses on the upper circulation double-ring 104

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This is a picture of a traditional Potato-Row House,

BIG tries to re-convert old typologies, with the

in Central Copenhagen

same idea of a front-private courtyard

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02 ORIENTATION CROSS VENTILATION Most of the dwellings are east-west orientated In a dwelling block, a minimum of twoside facades assures cross ventilation and better thermal regulation in all seasonal conditions. This is the case of all the 8 House dwellings. Furthermore, the volume has been crushed down in its South corner to facilitate the entrance of sunlight.

W WINTER SOLSTICE 12:00 H

S SUMMER SOLSTICE 12:00 H 108

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02 COMMUNAL SPACES THE SOCIAL TOWER Multipurpose spaces stacked

In this block all the communal functions have been concentrated in the point where the figure 8 crosses itself. This is a social tower of empty space tying or linking the House together from basement to attic. It contains meeting rooms, canteen for parties with kitchen and outdoor spaces for barbecues. Its cladding is made of aluminium gold composite panels, in order to be distinguished as a communal place within the block.

It is an empty space tying or linking the House together from basement to attic 110

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02 EXTERIOR SPACES ORGY OF SPACES Plazas, courtyards, stepped streets, quays, front gardens and roof gardens Bjarke Ingels refers to an “Orgy of spaces” when he speaks about 8 House because the variety of types. Some of them are public, some semipublic, some private and recreate the diversity of exterior spaces in the historic city.

01. North courtyard, in a Japanese style, with cobblestones and grass mounds. 02. South courtyard, with a lot of sunlight and exterior space for the kindergarten.

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02

They recreate the diversity of exterior spaces in the historic city 113

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03. Soft performances

Density is friendly owing to the subjective performances. These performances are the last step in the entire process of constructing the compact city, a process which starts off dividing up solids and voids brought about by fluxes and finishes up with perceptions such as privacy or safety. This combination of decisions and conditions is synthesized into a specific dwelling, located in a given building and setting, which is what the user perceives. The subjective performances of this dwelling come from its interaction with the user and they only appear in the postoccupancy period. 114

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03 PRIVACY BUFFER SPACE Private outdoor space Privacy is opposed to Community. The balance between both can be achieved by means of architecture. In the case of the dwellings located opposite the high-rise streets, privacy is maintained by the terraces which act as intermediate spaces to buffer the access.

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03 FLEXIBILITY CONTROL BY THE USER Double height ceilings The rising shape permits large interior ceiling-heights in some dwellings. The user can act on the interior space not just horizontally, but also vertically. In some cases, double-height ceilings give the possibility to have a mezzanine or a second level with casual uses. The apartment on the image below has 90 sqm.

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03 SPACIOUSNESS UNEXPECTED VIEWS Floor plan at different levels The different width of the ribbon and different height of the dwelling’s section allow variable future configurations of the interior layout. This picture shows the richness of the spatial solution in this dwelling. Staircase, two windows with different orientations, various floor levels, etc. This row-house has 115 sqm.

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03 RELATIONSHIP WITH NATURE BLURRING THE LIMITS Big openings and exterior spaces All the dwellings have large windows and outdoor space for users to feel the proximity to the natural spaces in the surrounding area. Kalfebod Park and the bird sanctuary offer a mid-distance natural setting while the private outdoor spaces allow the residents to experience Biophilia, the sense of a connection with nature, in a more immediate fashion, by growing their own plants.

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03 SAFETY AND SECURITY VISUAL CONTROL BY THE RESIDENTS Open air circulations and protected courtyards Visual surveillance from the dwellings is crucial in order to prevent the common spaces from becoming areas of conflict, to this end all the horizontal circulation elements are open. Public space runs continuously and safely, facilitating children’s movements from the dwelling to the courtyard play-areas. By night, stepped streets are generously lightened to provide safety and security at the same time.

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03 SENSE OF COMMUNITY EASY RESIDENT ENCOUNTERS Great variety of communal spaces Social life invades up to the higher altitudes of this building. The dwellings located up, due to the sky street, are rooted in the community because they are accessible, openly and directly by foot, from the ground floor. Altitude does not mean isolation in this case.

At the South corner, a café serves as meeting point for the whole area and faces the canal.

All these performances, hard and soft, shape solids and interact with voids enhancing or making worse the intrinsic characteristics of the urban form. 126

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THE CLEAN DENSITY

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01. Introduction

We would like to underline the importance of the self-sufficient urban block as a piece of clean density. We’ve selected an example in which the main feature is the behaviour of the inhabitants In 2006, the city of Helsinki approved the Master Plan for this harbour area near the city centre. Finland has one of the world’s largest per capita ecological footprint. In order to reduce carbon emissions, the Master Plan establishes a similar density to that of Barcelona. This is the winning project of the competition and its aim was to consider the city as a living factory of ecology. This block is an experiment within the Plan, combining uses, and this is new, educating user-habits. This block and the whole neighborhood, should be a sort of living factory of ecological behaviour. It should be the first carbon neutral district in Finland. 130

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02. Zero carbon footprint

The project is called Low2No (from low emissions to no emissions) and is designed by Sauerbruch Hutton in collaboration with Arup. We can see that, as in the Renault Site in Paris, here we have an open urban block. The volumes in blue are devoted to housing: family-apartments, elderly assisted units and a student residence. All of the podium surface is dedicated to offices and retail. There is not car park underground. 132

LOW2NO ARUP, SAUERBRUCH HUTTON, EXPERIENTIA HELSINKI, FINLAND 2009 133

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03. Building the clean density 01. SYSTEMS Highly efficient underfloor heating Narrow floor plans to enable natural ventilation Utilising excess heat from building High performance ventilation heat recovery 6% Installations along the perimeter of the building.

02. MATERIALS AND CONSTRUCTION Laminated wood structure for the dwellings Recycled concrete for the podium structure Lightweight cladding with high solar heat gain.

03. GREEN AND CULTIVATION SPACES Level 0. “Wood layers” at ground level Level 3. Semi-public gardens above the base Levels 3-6. South orientation greenhouses Green roof + rainwater storage tank

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04. Behavioral habits 01 PUBLIC DISPLAY

02 ELECTRIC CARS

03 POCKET GREEN HOUSES

04 INCUBATOR CENTRE

05 WORKING NEAR BY

06 RENEWABLE ENERGY

But the most striking thing in this project is the importance given to behavior. Here there are some of the 50 behavioral features that the residents should follow: 01 Public billboards will show the emissions and consumption of each building, so every building will compete to reduce its own figures. 02 Communal electric cars will be available to be shared. 03. Private pocket greenhouses must provide 10% of vegetables consumption of each family. 04 An Incubator Centre, located within the block, will spread information about ecological behavior. 05 Renewable energy will be obtained from a wind farm outside the plot financed by the owners. 06 Working and living within the block will be an advantage for taking green mortgages, which means 20% lower interest rate. 136

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THE DESIRABLE DENSITY

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If we were to ask ourselves what the

be built, but while building the city, we

desired house really was,

can’t forget the home.

most of us would recognize that we

The home for the citizen who will put

have an ideal photo in mind.

their name on the letterbox.

It would be even more embarrassing,

If we asked at the beginning what

if we were to ask ourselves where

density was, now you can be sure that

we live at present, in which type of

we were not referring to hyperdensity.

house, in which part of the city and

For us density is the good balance of

what plans we have for the future.

population and uses, the sustainable

Suddenly, density ceases to be a

way of living together, the successful

concept, something vital for the

performances of the buildings.

planet, a ratio for judging plans.

We need to live in dense cities and must

Suddenly, density becomes an

transform such a need into desire. Let´s

uncomfortable subject which deeply

turn Density into home, and each home

affects our decisions.

into our home.

We know that the dense city has to research group 140

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DENSITY IS HOME Housing by a+t research group ISBN 978-84-615-1237-9 201I English/Español edition

NEXT Collective Housing in progress ISBN 978-84-613-8676-5 2010 English/Español edition

HOCO Density Housing Construction & Costs ISBN 978-84-613-3080-5 2009 English/Español edition

DENSITY PROJECTS 36 new concepts on collective housing ISBN 978-84-612-1335-1 2007 English/Español edition

DBOOK Density, Data, Diagrams, Dwellings ISBN 978-84-611-5900-0 2007 English/Español edition

DENSITY. CONDENSED EDITION New collective housing ISBN 84-611-1203-2 2006 English/Español edition

architecture publishers Calle General Álava, 15 2°A. 01005 Vitoria-Gasteiz. Spain 142

aplust.net 143