Latsia

The purpose of this competition was the design of Pallourokampos Park, in order to offer to the citizens a place of social activities and amusement. The program included different indoor and outdoor facilities.

The main design intention is to propose a park layout which takes advantage of the natural inclination of the ground and integrates the outdoor and indoor functions as part of the new landscape.

Due to the fact that the site is the interior lot that acts as a remnant of the private properties which define its borderline, the proposed scheme infers to the need of an introvert configuration which isolates itself from the immediate urban environment and constantly refers to long distance views seen from its higher levels.

Proposal

The proposal attempts to organize  a spatial dialectic  between two basic zones that open up on the different ‘rooms’ – functional units  of the program,  in relation to the urban tissue.

– The ‘balcony’ at the upper level of the park, that refers to the main zone of circulation and includes the main entrances to the park.

– The broader and basic zone at the lower level which is formed by two slopes. The one allows a continuous interconnection with the balcony zone and the other follows the northwest boundary of the site offering a buffer zone with high plantation between the park and the surrounding urban area.

The central aim of the proposal is the organization of a  diversity of views and experiences through the formation of a fluid landscape in different ground  levels.  Through the manipulation of  the balcony and the inclined grounds, three main ‘rooms’ are formed.

These ‘rooms’ are treated as containers of specific outdoor and indoor facilities attempting to form cohesive functional units that refer to their  distinctive character ( educational, recreational and sports) . ‘Room A’ is the container of the educational uses of the program, the Environmental and education Center and the outdoor amphitheater. ‘Room B‘ stands for the recreational uses, including the cafe-restaurant, the children playground and the outdoor cinema while ‘Room C‘ includes the basketball and tennis courts that define  the sports area of the program.

Functional Units

Environmental/Education Center: The building is designed in two levels, while its roof acts like an entrance area  for the park. Visiitors’ functions develop around an atrium and constitute an autonomous entity along with the entity of the offices.

Outdoor amphitheater: It is located near an entrance to the park and takes advantage of the inclination of the ground. It can function autonomously or accommodate E.E.C. events by a short-distance walk. The lighting and sound control rooms, the dressing rooms and wc are placed underground.

Cafe-restaurant: It is located in a central position to the plot, at the upper park level and near the main entrance. Its roof is used a belvedere which is accessible through a ramp.

Outdoor cinema.: It is located within short distance to the cafe-restaurant where part of the seats are placed in such a manner that could act as additional up-level seats for the cinema as well. Its screen is movable and is suspended from the belvedere using a metal construction during summer. The cinema seats develop along contour lines of the inclined terrain.

Basketball and tennis courts: They are located all together and with N-S orientation at Room C and near the Iroon street entrance.