The existing landscape, and the project’s natural and cultural landscape. Biotope. Trees. Urban community gardens, “urban farming.” The philosophy of urban planning and architecture.
At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the Mariensztat area was inhabited by a poor working-class population and was initially built up with wooden structures, which, with the city’s development following World War I and the regaining of independence, were transformed into dense, brick-built commercial housing. The project site is located in an area where development progressed intensively from the early 20th century until the outbreak of World War II, taking the form of dense, block-style rental housing.
During the city’s reconstruction, it was decided to implement the urban layout of Mariensztat according to Zygmunt Stępiński’s design, which only corresponded to the pre-war street layout and did not replicate the inconveniences of cramped rental housing. On the plots of the current University development, the buildings were not reconstructed, just as in the neighboring blocks, and over the years these areas were planted with trees, so that today the area has the character of a park. The existing park greenery is a tremendous asset of this place and should be preserved to the greatest extent possible. The wooded areas adjacent to the pavilion-style building and extending into it in the form of squares, courtyards, and landscaped plazas will define its character. The clustered structure of this building complex coexists and harmonizes with nature.
The Philosophy of Urban Planning and Architecture.
Architecture serves as a reflection of the times in which it is created, bearing witness to existing and future cultural, social, technological, and environmental phenomena. In these times of cultural change and climate transformation, the proposed building embraces timeless core programmatic principles, such as: Timelessness and flexibility—understood as adaptability to changing functional programs, organizational structures of university departments, and even changes in the functional zoning of the building.
Flexibility – as the ability to modify the building to meet changing functional, spatial, or technological needs in response to organizational, cultural, and social requirements. Over the course of its expected decades-long operational cycle, the building ensures the possibility of non-invasive and easy adaptation to changes. To this end, a simple structural layout has been designed—based on an 8.10 x 8.10 m structural module that is prefabricated to the greatest extent possible, ensuring the possibility of flexible spatial arrangement and modification, and even expansion, which can be achieved thanks to, among other things:
‐ an open internal structure that allows for natural modification of the space and flexible changes to its functions.
‐ an open external structure that can be continued as part of future modular expansion, maintaining the coherent and logical character of the building complex. This is significant in light of the University’s future investment plans for the next phase, which will be developed as a continuation of the established structural, functional, and spatial framework.
Environmental responsibility—resource and land management, energy conservation,
and public and community spaces.
Responsibility—in the social sense—manifested in sustainable and eco-friendly design and construction that respects the environment and its resources, and reduces the carbon footprint of CO₂ emissions. This principle is reflected in the project through the selection of appropriate spatial and urban planning solutions as well as construction technologies, the main ones being:
‐ the use of wood as the primary building material, which, as a raw material, is renewable and recyclable. It comes from the natural environment and is produced within a sustainable botanical cycle of water and energy. Glued laminated timber, used as the building’s primary load-bearing structure, is a natural, renewable material with a negative carbon footprint compared to concrete or steel, the use of which in the design has been limited to an absolute minimum. The wooden structure integrated into the facade allows for the rational and complementary use of this material, leveraging its excellent thermal insulation properties while minimizing the use of facade insulation materials.The wooden structure is protected from the elements on the facade both passively—through the use of flashings on horizontal elements and at joints to prevent rainwater from pooling and penetrating—and actively—through wood impregnation and UV protection, which, with the regular maintenance routinely performed on structures of this type, will ensure their expected durability.
‐ Modularity and prefabrication – a simple, modular design combined with glued laminated timber, a material ideally suited for prefabrication, allows the entire building structure to be prepared off-site and then quickly assembled. This shortens construction time, lowers assembly costs, and reduces energy consumption and the use of heavy, environmentally harmful equipment throughout the entire construction process. The modularity and repeatability of the architectural design and structural elements streamline the range of structural components and provide efficient options for transforming the building during its use, as well as for future expansion and modification of the building volume.
‐ recycling – materials used for construction and interior finishing will, to the greatest extent possible, be recycled or capable of being recycled at the end of their useful life. These will include steel, aluminum, glass, wood-composite panels, and various other composite elements based on natural materials. A key consideration in selecting these materials is sourcing them locally whenever possible, which helps, among other things, to reduce the length of the supply chain and the associated environmentally harmful transportation.
‐ renewable energy sources (RES) – a photovoltaic system is planned for the building’s roof. Heat and, potentially, cooling are expected to be obtained through heat pumps and ground-source heat exchangers.
Hybrid HVAC solutions – the building has been designed with high thermal inertia; the design incorporates hybrid ventilation that utilizes natural airflow within the building, as well as an external roller shutter system to prevent rooms from overheating, which will reduce energy consumption and operating costs. The use of rainwater within the building for irrigation and the installation of greywater systems for toilet flushing are also planned. The use of heat recovery and energy recovery solutions inside the building is anticipated. All stormwater from the site will be retained and managed, as described in detail in subsequent sections.
‐ High and low vegetation and site development ‐ Preserving as many existing trees as possible and additional planned tree plantings will partially offset the timber used in construction within the biotope. Existing trees and plantings naturally shade the foregrounds and lower the temperature around the building in summer, as well as providing a natural sunshade for the building during the summer months, increasing its thermal inertia. In winter, they provide protection and reduce the cooling of the facades by cold winds. Human-Friendliness and Environmental Neutrality – implemented as follows: ‐ neutralność dla środowiska i budynek jako obiekt przyjazny środowisku przyrodniczemu ‐ minimalizujący wpływ na środowisko naturalne zarówno w trakcie jego realizacji w sposób nieinwazyjny, w systemie lekkiej prefabrykacji, bez użycia ciężkiego sprzętu, jak również w trakcie jego eksploatacji. Budynek przyjazny dla biotopu i biosfery.
‐ przyjazność człowiekowi, którą zapewnia otwarty obiekt akademicki o zrozumiałej strukturze funkcjonowania, pełen naturalnego światła, wykorzystujący naturalne materiały konstrukcyjne, zapewniający korzystny klimat akustyczny i termiczny we wnętrzach m.in. poprzez zapewnienie swobodnego przewietrzania przez elewacje w systemie aktywnej „podwójnej skóry”, dziedzińce i patia, regulowany dopływ światła dziennego i podwyższone do maksimum parametry izolacyjne przegród zewnętrznych. Budynek dający możliwość kontaktu z otoczeniem poprzez duże panoramiczne przeszklenia, jednocześnie o bardzo wysokich parametrach izolacyjnych dwukomorowych zestawów szklanych oraz równie symboliczną otwartość na główną przestrzeń
wewnętrzną jako serce aktywności społeczności akademickiej. Zastosowanie drewna jako materiału dominującego przyjaźnie sprzyja także poprawie mikroklimatu budynku poprzez utrzymywanie w naturalny sposób wilgotności powietrza, równowagi w zakresie zmian temperatury oraz uzyskaniu optymalnych warunków akustycznych. W budynku przewidziano także miejskie ogrody pożytku społecznego („urban farming”) i instalacje –hotele dla owadów na dachach.
Streets, squares, plazas, walkways, and driveways. Public, semi-public, and private spaces. The main entrance to the building is located at the corner of Dobra and Karowa Streets, under the building’s arcade. In front of the building’s entrance is a structure that serves as both a canopy and a terrace, integrated with the existing trees, where a summer café is situated. It is accessible via a connecting passageway from the building’s interior on the upper floor, as well as via stairs directly from street level and the lawn of the “Gabinet Drzew.” On the eastern side, along Dobra Street, an openwork media screen is planned, behind which a double row of growing trees remains, creating a semi-public space with the character of a green “Gabinet Drzew.” On the north side, new tree plantings are planned within the future courtyard, which will be clearly visible upon completion of the second phase of the project. On the south side, a flower and vegetable garden is planned, while on the roof level above the third floor there is a second, larger vegetable and fruit garden, designed for educational and community purposes, including to support the operation of a summer café located on the roof terrace above the entrance.
Entrances to the community service facilities are planned from the corner of Karowa and Furmańska Streets and, naturally, from the lobby inside the building. The entrance to the underground garage is located on Furmańska Street, near the boundary between the phases of the planned development. Adjacent to the entrance are the waste collection area and the service facilities for the reading room, both equipped with dedicated elevators. The building is accessible to cyclists via connections to nearby bike trails and bike paths, including the intersection of the N-S bike path along the Vistula River with the underpass beneath Wisłostrada. The bike parking area is located in the building’s arcade, in the immediate vicinity of the main entrance. Changing rooms with showers for cyclists are located on underground level 01, adjacent to the educational section. Motorcycle parking is located in the underground garage on level 02, which is accessible via a ramp with a gradient of approximately 15%.
The structure of the exterior and interior spaces, and the functional, utility, and spatial program.
All features of the building’s urban design are simultaneously features of its architectural and functional-utility structure, as follows: flexibility—as the ability to modify the building to meet changing functional, spatial, and technological needs in response to cultural and social requirements. Over the course of its expected decades-long operational cycle, the building offers the possibility of adapting to functional, utility, and spatial changes.
To this end, the following elements were designed, among others:
‐ a structural layout—based on an 8.10 x 8.10 m structural module, prefabricated to the greatest extent possible, ensuring the possibility of flexible spatial arrangement, modification, and expansion;
‐ an open, modular internal structural and functional layout that allows for easy modification and transformation of the space as well as flexible changes to its functions;
‐ an open external structure of the building layout, which can be extended for future expansion while maintaining the coherent and logical character of the original building complex. This is essential for the University’s future investment plans regarding the construction of the next phase, which in our design can be developed as a logical continuation of the adopted structural and functional – spatial;
‐ functional flexibility achieved, among other things, through a modular, nest-like functional layout with a modular, nest-like system of technical installations. This approach allows for the building to adapt to the changing functional and spatial needs of its users.
In an era where cultural, social, and technological changes occur rapidly and have a direct impact on our surroundings, a building should, throughout its life cycle, be able to respond to these changes in a non-invasive manner, unrestricted by the building’s structure or the architecture of its technical systems. To this end, the project’s architecture includes:
‐ a simple structural layout—based on a modular scheme, 100% prefabricated, allowing for flexible spatial arrangement and the opening of spaces between floors;
‐ an open internal structure, allowing for easy and simple modification of the space and its free reorganization depending on the changing needs and requirements of users. The logical arrangement of structural columns and beams, along with dimensional modularity, ensures a simple and understandable configuration of the functional structure and its future transformation both vertically and horizontally.
‐ an open external functional structure of the building’s composition, which can be extended through potential expansion by adding modules in any direction, both horizontally and vertically.