Inner City Proposal

The project is located in České Budějovice, the largest city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic and its political and commercial capital. The main concept for this project was to reproduce the atmosphere and energy of a typical town square and avoid the ‘dormitory’ feeling of generic apartment blocks. In order to achieve this, the design focused on the residential blocks being situated along the perimeter of the site, maintaining an outdoor courtyard in the centre. At ground level, the design encompasses a number of commercial activities as well as 8 ‘accessible’ apartments.

Including these commercial spaces should convert the empty space into a proper piazza where people can gather. This area is characterised by a glass curtain wall, to connect the inside and outside spaces. To emphasise the ‘piazza effect’ the inner cladding of the residential blocks reimagine the classical facade styles and colours that are present in the city. The roof is accessible to all the tenants of the building and can be used as a vegetable garden to cultivate food. It is hoped that these community spaces will have positive social impacts as they encourage people to interact, as well as creating more inner-city gardens.