The project takes place in the city of Succieu, in the so-called “les terres froides – the cold lands.” The place has a strong relationship with the earth traditionally used to build the farm. Many of them spot the landscape with their specific shape; thick walls made of earth and a large pitched roof. This vernacular architecture is now surrounded by many family houses.
Succieu has a long rugby history. The whole territory welcomes many teams and players. The rugby field is the center of the village activity. It’s a rough way of playing, in the mud under the rain. Aesthetics are not the goal; the focus is on the fighting spirit. The municipal leisure center is naturally situated next to the rugby field where a former municipal center and cloakroom have been demolished.
The project is based on a contemporary interpretation of the traditional farm. Its shape and materiality are the starting point for the layout. The basic shape of the long pitch roof is manipulated and stretched to become a hybrid unit. Its scale is voluntarily small in regards to the surrounding buildings. The municipal leisure center is made of four hybrid units sliding next to each other in order to offer a low scale facade. The goal is to avoid a small copy-paste of a typical urban leisure center. It is a municipal leisure set in the countryside, which already provides enough environment.
On the other side of the site a single unit is dedicated to the cloakroom. This strategy is due to the need of keeping the existing cloakroom during the entire construction time, in between the two new buildings.
The cloakroom location offers a background boundary to the site and the public space. As a tribute to the rugby and in order to offer more to the users, two tribunes are implanted in the building. They face the field and offer a more comfortable place to enjoy the game.
The materiality of the project is naturally based on the farm legacy, the earth construction. The project is made of concrete cast in place. It is a contemporary vision of the earth construction: using a mineral material through a casting process. Its color comes from a varnish applied on the concrete.
The western façade is made of one perforated concrete wall. This specific part aims to avoid the light getting into the building through a thick filter. It is working as a Halloween pumpkin at night offering a smooth light to the surrounding.
Inside the municipal leisure, the undulating shape of the roof is visible on the ceiling. The main room is covered by this specific white ceiling. Acoustics and natural daylight are under control by an active system and offer multitasking space.