Case Study 2: Building Complex for Municipal Welfare uses in Thessaloniki
Photos given by organising authority to participants. For more click here.
The Papafi Stables area belongs to the Municipality of Thessaloniki. The stables were used extensively during the 19th and the 20th century, but all buildings in the lot have been demolished over the years.
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This competition forms just a part of a broader strategic plan carried out by the Municipality to increase the quality of its social services. The competition was announced in July 2018 and its goal was to provide citizens with an easily accessible and functional building, which would also be technically and aesthetically innovative and sustainable. One of the objectives was that the building would blend in the rest of the neighborhood and that it would designate free space to the local inhabitants.
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This was an open, single-stage, composite architectural competition. It particularly aimed at creating a complex building ensemble with welfare services and open spaces. Rights to participation were granted to individuals and legal persons with a professional license to practice the profession.
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The brief provided participants with information about the area and the site and an outline of what the outcomes of the competition should be. What is novel in this case, was that the Municipality didn't set the goals alone; instead, it worked along with members of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, School of Architecture and organized a participatory workshop in an attempt to integrate the community perspective. This workshop allowed local inhabitants to express what they would like to see happening in the area; upon the workshop completion, their ideas were further appraised and eventually integrated in the brief.
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Participants had to submit their proposals in September 2018 (a mere 2 months after the original competition announcement). The brief required participants to submit an A4 issue with a maximum of 20 pages.
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The jury consisted of five members; one distinguished professional; one architect representing the Municipality of Thessaloniki and three additional members balloted from the existing official list of architects who fulfill the requirements for such a position. Jury final selection was announced 9 months after the submission. Deliberations were held in five different sessions during March 2018; of the 33 proposals, 7 stood out. The jury awarded 3 prizes and 4 honorable mentions.
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Despite the fact that there were no objections to this competition prizes the Municipality did not immediately assign the next stage of the study to the winners.
