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Architects: Gastón Cuña, Marcelo Roux
Text description provided by the architects. Friendship Park is a public space created for the development of recreational activities, where children and youth can participate regardless of their physical or cognitive abilities. Located in the park of Villa Dolores in Montevideo, next to the Municipal Planetarium, it became the first park with fully accessible facilities in the country.
The commission arises with the premise of converting a free area of 70 x 50 meters into a public space to play, learn and share without barriers. It means the consolidation of a process of transformation of public spaces in Montevideo under the "Commitment to Accessibility" program of the City of Montevideo.
The requirements relating to total accessibility in the design of the park, as seen from the building regulations, were designed from their positive contingencies; avoiding to assume that accessibility is settled with a restrictive design.
The conditions of the area of intervention are outlined in an inclined plane, a hemisphere (municipal planetarium projected by Architect Juan A. Scasso in the middle of last century), a cylinder (observatory) and a background of green dots (vegetation to preserve).
These specific circumstances of the site and the specific requirements related to universal access area guided the formal, geometric, spatial and poetic shaping of the project.
The project strategy is defined by a large horizontal platform, achieved by digging into the existing slanted plane.
The park is a contained area, the product of a geometric pattern of curves and reverse curves that circumvent existing plant species, the cylinder of the observatory and avoid sharp edges. It forms a surface that can enable different pools, in line with the required program and includes a covered area where universal toilets and a workshop for the development of activities in the virtual world are located.
The level difference between the park and the street and side avenue, protects it from vehicle noises and the dynamic of the urban perimeter. The area between the park and the streets was designed as a garden with various species, which provide color and scent to the practice of playfulness. The will to have an inclusive environment, demanded us to conceive the park from the senses and their possibilities. To do so we opted for devices that enhance the tactile, audible and aromatic experiences. We opted for concrete, metal and rubber as the dominant materials.
The park consists of 6 sections, arranged as specific episodes and loaded with playful devices, furniture and facilities.
1- Children's corner: games for children from zero to three years old.
2- Turn and roll: various hammocks and carousel for psychomotor development.
3- Water: intended for contemplation, and programmed sounds and games.
4- Labyrinth: game that integrates touch and communication elements.
5- Amphitheater: meeting space for various events and development of group activities.
6- Technology: area covered with amenities and facilities for digital and virtual development.
