Anna & Eugeni Bach, architects

EUROPAN 12 . Ås

Anna & Eugeni Bach, architects

The proposal is born from a deep urban analysis of As, understanding the site, placed at the main corner of the two main streets of the city centre, as a key element for the future transformation of the city.

URBAN CONTEXT
The East facade of Moerveien street is formed by a series of continuous buildings which shape this street, while the West facade is much more open. The proposal pretends to generate a new public space in the centre of As via reinforcing this axis, opening the corner at Radhusplassen into a new square which is the entrance to a series of new activities: commercial spaces, offices, housing a new urban park and the new Tandberg Museum.
The proposal not only aims to “make city” in a local range, but is thought to help organizing the traffic circulations, as well as the bike and pedestrian routes in a much larger area, allowing a good communication with the future development to the North and to the rest of the city.

SITE STRATEGY
The first decisión when facing the Project is about what builidings should be preserved and which should be demolished. In this sense, we understood that it was necessary to preserve the Asheim house, as much for its long history, as for its recent life. On the other side, the Tandberg house is not preserved, as its position in the site would not help in connecting the new public spaces with the centre. About the Mega building, we believe it is not acceptable to demolish a building with such a short life, neither economically not for convictions when it is possible to give it a second new life. The Mega building is modified to turn it into the new Tandberg Museum, together with commercial spaces facing the square and Raveinen street, as well as new leisure / sports activities on its roof. The new Museum will be, together with these other activities, a new multifunctional space with non-stop activity.
Around the new museum, following the built front in Moerveien street, a series of new buildings with offices, studio / ateliers, student residences and housing, generate the new public Park and Plaza. These buildings are placed to protect this open space from the train tracks on the East and the County Road noise from the North, generating a calm “oasis” in the heart of the city centre.

ADAPTABILITY
We have worked to find a single structural module which could allow us to generate absolutley variable functions, which will allow a large adaptability in the future.
Our proposal shows an option of how the different uses could be place: studio / ateliers in the most southern building, two blocks of student dormitories with its communication spaces to the East, protecting from the train noise, two more blocks with one bedroom apartments for students, again with its communication spaces protecting from the County Road noise, and at the end, closer to Raveinen street, a housing building with one and two bedroom apartments.
All the new buildings are linked at the street level allowing a parking floor with easy access from the street and straight connection to every different function.
Finally, and very important, the proposal allows very easily to be built in different phases, as well as an easy division in different ownerships with varied interests.

Autores: Anna & Eugeni Bach, arquitectes.
Colaboradores: Albert Cabrer, Eva Florindo, Bianca Lins, Xavier Uriach.
Fecha de proyecto: Junio 2013.
Emplazamiento: Ås, Norway.