NEUHĀUSL HUNAL

The new retirement home for Prague district 3 is designed as a full-fledged part of the city. It is characterized by openness, friendliness, and honesty. These principles are transcribed within all scales of the project. The comprehensible building confirms the solid core of the urban structure, which at the same time it permeates and revives. The opening of the northwestern part of the plot expands the public space and creates a friendly anteroom for an active ground floor with a café, services, and the main entrance. The graspable scale and residential character of the upper floors help to create a home-like feeling. A distinctive concrete ledge vertically divides the five-story building, the plinth, differing in material and character of the openings, settles the house firmly into the terrain. Solid materiality and soothing gray-beige tones of ceramic tiles and plaster are complemented by aluminum frames and other elements in a color of linden blossom. Moreover., the non-institutional character is underlined by the exterior textile shading or details of the arches appearing within the ground floor, on window linings, or cornices. The elegant house is finished with a fine line of the attic.

The core of the clear layout makes up a generous atrium. It illuminates the interior on all levels and allows for plants and trees to invade the interior. On the living floors, protected terraces enter the atrium. Which supports one of the fundamental principles of design, offering a variety of social spaces that provide diverse stimuli. Within the interior, several informal seating areas by the windows can be found, or also a common kitchen. Clients have several opportunities how to gain fresh air, loggias on every floor, the activating garden as a private part of the plot, or the residential part of the green roof with views are available for use. All shared places stimulate interaction between residents and allow them to be a part of the community.

Clear zoning of layouts is essential, it supports easy orientation of clients and facilitates work of employees. Client rooms are located on the sunny south and west facades. Other sustainable principles include compact mass, ideal orientation towards the cardinal points, quality building envelope and its details, work with solar energy, reuse of rainwater, and the energy concept as a whole. Ultimately, the designed building is compact but diverse; simple but sophisticated; professional but friendly.

Retirement home

Competition: 2021

Team: David Neuhäusl, Matěj Hunal, Marek Vilášek, Jakub Zelenák, Veronika Paľová, Tereza Šírerová