LOCATION
Terrassa, Barcelona province
DESCRIPTION
2001
On the site where this building now stands, there used to be the ¨Meson de los Arcos¨, a bar that was well-known and loved by all the people of Terrassa. Its demolition, and the new construction were in themselves a difficult challenge to assume, and we had to make sure that the new building would not be rejected, or would at least not be less respected than the previous building.
Our involvement in the Plaça Vella building was complete, as it was the beginning of what is now known as the “real estate bubble”. Our private clients were decreasing due to the difficulties in finding land at a good price, and the new generation of real estate developers were more and more numerous and more and more ignorant about the world of construction. For this reason we felt that it was best to do the entire construction process ourselves; that is, promotion, design and technical direction of the job, construction, management and the final sale. It was exhausting, but the results were very good. We ended up with a building with a very high quality of materials, an incredibly economical price, and an architectural level that we think is very good. We completely changed the visual appearance that the side street Jaume Cantarer had, in such as way that it became a true commercial street and not just the secondary access street that it had been before. And the best thing was the comments from the people of Terrassa– they were all favorable, and everyone congratulated us on the new building.
On of the main reasons for this change in opinion is that the ground floor is completely made of glass, in such a way that from halfway down Jaume Cantarer Street, which is very narrow, you can see the Plaça Vella, and vice-versa. This visual opening-out at pedestrian level is very agreeable. The other reason is the placement of sandstone panels on the facade gives it a chromatic texture that is very appropriate in the old section of the city.
The type of balconies, the false facade on the main part, and the large opening at the entrance to the building give it a special presence. There is an important element to highlight, and that is the placement of a gothic threshold that had been in the entrance of the old building. This was remarked on by Domènec Ferran, director of the Museum of Terrassa, as a museum quality contribution that served to bring the museum to the streets of the city.
We took special care to make sure that the total height of the building was correct, as was that of the ground floor. We made it match the height of the connecting building next door. This seemingly simple thing was incredibly complex, as the height allowed by the General Plan of Terrassa is calculated by applying the average height of the block on which the building is located. The result of this calculation was 1 m less than the total height. We had to use the heights of all of the buildings in the Plaça Vella to demonstrate that the application of this regulation would be a mistake, as the constructability was in reality the same. It took almost a year to obtain the permit, and we had to pass through a huge number of urban officials and local representatives. In the end they gave us permission to do what we wanted to do.
DATA
Architect: Amadeu Oliva i Uriel
Technical Architect: Maria Rosa Remolà i Ferrer
Photography: Amadeu Oliva i Uriel
Structural Consultant: David Garcia
