The project assignment envisages the creation of an architectural and urban solution for a residential complex for multi-family housing. The block is rectangular, the direction of extension is northwest-southeast. The main purpose is housing, there are no additional or supplementary purposes.
The goal was to provide different residential units in compliance with valid regulations and norms, as well as defined urban planning parameters.
Given that the urban planning parameters are not in accordance with the existing condition, this solution offers a residential area that corresponds to the existing condition. The urban planning solution provided a harmonious relationship between the form of the block itself and the buildings that the block would contain, as well as the relationship between existing and newly designed greenery, which the city lacks.
During the design, the current economic situation caused by the pandemic and accompanying economic changes in the region was considered. With this proposal, a residential complex of edge construction and open type was designed, and the block was divided into two symmetrical units with buildings of Po+D+8 floors and a ground floor and a basement that connect four buildings each. The concept of the residential block was designed with the aim of providing a space for living close to the estimated existing condition, with as many green areas as possible, but also a larger number of parking spaces for tenants, considering the problem of lack thereof.
All of the buildings (eight) are grouped in two units, symmetrically in relation to the plot. Both units have common basement rooms and ground floors, and separate buildings with residential units.
By designing a residential complex in which the existing condition and the urban planning parameters from the planning documentation differ, there is a risk of violating that planning documentation at the expense of the tenants' living standards. Due to accelerated urbanization and industrialization during the last decades, the population in cities is mainly guided by the idea of ​​using the available space for construction as much as possible, while greenery is almost completely suppressed and neglected. It is also known that city garages represent the place of gray concrete and that they take up a lot of space, which is also not the best solution either from the ecological or economic aspect, or from any other aspect of sustainable construction.
All the above reasons create fertile ground for illegal construction of poor quality. In order to avoid that problem, a solution must be found that is optimal and takes into account both ecological, economic and social problems that occur in the given area. Designing a sustainable and modern residential complex would not only avoid the mentioned problems, but would also significantly improve the standard of living of the tenants, and thus also set an example of how to solve similar problems in this area during the construction of the space being designed.
It is also important to note that there are discrepancies between planning documents and real needs and that the rules for building medium and high density housing according to planning documents in Niš often do not take population migration into account. Regardless of the fact that, according to the latest census, Niš lost a lot of inhabitants compared to the previous census, this may not be the case in the future. Migration is a normal and even desirable social phenomenon, so in connection with that there is also the possibility of overpopulation of the city, which can be a problem. It is necessary to plan the construction of more collective housing facilities similar to the above examples of good practice, which implies a higher number of floors compared to the prescribed and therefore less land occupation, so that the greenery does not disappear completely.
The newly designed solution is based on architectural and design principles of modern design and existing buildings in the environment, combined with certain principles of sustainable construction and with mandatory elements of accessibility for people with disabilities, the elderly and children. With this design method, we made life easier for the tenants and showed that the architect-designer should, from the very beginning, think about the problem of multi-family housing and the advantages of living in multi-family residential buildings, so that it could proceed humanely.
And after all, let's not forget that the famous architect Henry Louis Sullivan has stated that architecture is the art that affects a person most slowly, but most permanently!