RAMA Estudio has won a competition organized by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Urban Development and Housing (Miduvi) to transform public buildings into social housing. "Casa Cevallos" seeks to give a new face to the Miduvi Tungurahua building, located in front of the Cevallos Park in Ambato, Ecuador, incorporating 16 apartments for 45 inhabitants through 7 adaptable typologies.
"The recovery of buildings that are in disuse or underutilized in the urban center of the cities is the opportunity to project a concentric, sustainable, and sustainable city," explains RAMA Estudio. "Aligned to this strategy, our proposal aims to promote an architecture that generates diverse habitable scenarios without forgetting the essence of the urban center of the city of Ambato and its historically commercial and cultural soul," added the architects.
The Ecuadorian firm offers a structure that adapts to the heritage elements present in its surroundings. The building is oriented towards Cevallos Park and its second floor is integrated as an extension of the public space, encouraging the initiatives and undertakings of its residents and allowing pedestrian access to the building.
We propose a project that optimizes existing and added resources. We will work with renewable materials and maintain a large percentage of the existing infrastructure, such as installation ducts, vertical circulations and masonry.
The project consists of three housing blocks interconnected by three garden courtyards. The first block creates a space linked to the public space to promote family microeconomies. At the same time, the courtyard facing the park will have multiple functions by serving as a community vegetable garden, a meeting place for users, and a common room. Moreover, a cafeteria will be implemented to ensure the financial sustainability of the project.
The façade will be a gallery made of wood, metal, and glass with lattices that guarantee privacy and uniformity of all interior spaces in relation to the public space. A piece is annexed to the existing structure to generate a gallery for horizontal circulation and access to the dwellings.
Details
Project: Cevallos House
Architects: Carolina Rodas, Felipe Donoso, Carla Chávez, Patricia Buenaño
Project Team: María Laura Espinoza, Jose Loyo, Felipe Cisneros, Jose Rosales, Camila Murgueytio, Kevin Soliz, Ruby Quispe, Diego Corimaita
Location: Ambato, Ecuador
Construction: 2023
