bitovky - public housing building

Ing. arch. Matej Krempaský

Project idea

Composing space is a commitment to its users. In urban and architectural design, thinking without context is worse than not thinking at all. Our proposal perceives the surroundings of the addressed area just as precisely as the area itself. We develop routing, reconnect what has been severed, and strive for compositional balance. There is beauty in simplicity. In the case of rental housing, simplicity is reality. Let us create value through high-quality rather than expensive architecture; let us decorate effectively and contextually – a subtle hint of the panel grid as a characteristic quality of the Petržalka district. Subtle is not boring; subtle is prudent, economical, and creativity-inducing.

The challenge of using two blocks to hint at a perimeter block structure – and pouring life between them. Supporting the community through public space, and filling the public space with the community. An opportunity to heal the locality from its painful fragmentation, create links between pieces, connect with a view to the future, integrate the vulnerable, build tolerance, and suppress metropolitan apathy.

The goal of our design is clear – we work with the overlap of efficient architecture into the everyday life of not only the residents themselves, but all visitors, passers-by, commuters, small market vendors, every gender, both young and old. We blur the sharp edge between public and private, and through the civil nature of the design, we incline towards the club-community genius loci of the area.

Project description

Location and Connectivity:
The project is situated on Ondreja Štefánka Street in a semi-industrial zone near a 4-lane road, a Lidl supermarket, and a marketplace. While there is no metro access, it connects well via public transport as well as bicycles, specifically good connection to cycling route linking centre of Bratislava with Austria.

Apartment Layouts:
The project consists of two residential buildings. Typical Floor A: Offers 1-room (35 m2) and 3-room apartments (76 m2). Typical Floor B: Offers 1-room (37 m2) and 2-room apartments (62 m2). The average living area of an apartment is 54 m2, and 10% of the total building floor area is dedicated to service and community spaces.

Community spaces:
One semi-private enclosed interior space, another one semi-private sheltered exterior space and one semi-public tiny square between them connecting public with residents and vice versa.

Technical information

Areas and Dimensions:
The total built-up area is 559.8 m2, and the structural floor height is 3 m.

Structure and Materials:
The primary load-bearing structure is a reinforced concrete wall monolith, insulated with EPS, and finished with a PVC waterproofing membrane on the roof.

HVAC Systems:
Air exchange is handled via a heat pump and heat recovery (recuperation) system. Water heating and space heating rely on a heat pump, combining underfloor heating in the social areas of the apartments with radiators in the private rooms.