On the nearly triangular site, the building is placed
against the west partition wall aligning it with the streets
and setting it back from the eastern end to free a small public
space in the intersection of the two streets like an entrance
esplanade, creating a small pedestrian square which includes
a pond lit at night, an orange tree and some benches. The result
of the above is a building with a trapezoidal shape structured
into two intersecting volumes of different heights of only two
floors on each of the streets.
Public access to the building is on the eastern end
on the northern side, tangential to the main axis of the building.
There are situated in linear order a porch, a wind screen, a
security checkpoint and the reception and information desk. All
with natural light, views of the street and views of the interior
of the offices. The vertical service shaft and circulation core
is situated against the partition wall on the north façade.
The rest of the ground floor has an open plan except for the
two offices for directors and some meeting rooms. The landscape
office space on the upper floor also looks partially onto the
south façade and occupies part of the northern part of
the floor not used by the vertical service cores.
Special mention should be given to the system of skylights
used on the ground and upper floor. Because of the depth of the
building owing to the characteristics of the site, we also used
the roofs to introduce natural light in the building. All these
skylights were made with Kalwall panels, a translucent material
of high thermal resistance
|