Housing for elderly and civic center in the Quirón Space

The empty site of the old Quirón Hospital has been unbuilt for a long time but used intensely by the residents of the neighborhood. Its appropriation by the neighbors has represented a very positive and dynamic experience which should be maintained. The construction of the new municipal complex which includes housing for the elderly and a civic center is planned in such a way that the essential characteristics needed for the enhancement of the social life of the neighborhood are not lost. For this reason, the continuity of the built urban fabric and open spaces is generated.

We place the Agora, a large free open space, in the center of the site as to organize the activities and access to the civic center. This space opens to both the Mare de Déu de la Salut street and to the avenue of the Mare de Déu de Montserrat, over which it has a full visual connection. In this way we create an alternative pedestrian route which ties the building into the urban fabric, connecting it with the vitality of the street and making the street participate in the vitality of the building.

The Ágora is also directly connected with the roof of the building which is recovered for a public use, multiplying the surface of free space and allowing the neighborhood associations to carry out the same activities as when the site was an empty lot: gardens, open-air cinema, popular meals. Similarly, the apartments for the elderly and a home for the aged which is included within the housing program, a pilot experience, have their own terrace where they can carry out their own outdoor activities jointly or, when appropriate, separately.