Westown –
Block #36
General
Project : Westown – Block #36
Westown : Mixed use City Center – in West
Cairo, Egypt
Developer : SODIC
Intended use : Residential
Project Area : 2 000 000 sqm
Block Area : 4000 sqm
Footprint : 1600 sqm
Built up
area : 6100 sqm
Number of
apartments: 26 units
Block #36 is a residential block
in a new mixed use city center in West Cairo. The development is located in the
desert between the Cairo-Alexandria desert road and the city of Sheikh Zayed.
Understanding the context was a major key in the design process. When first
approaching this project we thought of the many challenges that face Cairo
today, a dynamic, diverse and ever-growing city, with rapid growth of
population and infrastructure. This growth has a dual nature; it is in many
cases a formal, planned and ordered growth, and yet is sometimes engulfed by an
informal, sporadic and chaotic growth. We observed that such a phenomenon was
very clearly and visually represented in the urban language of Westown’s surrounding
area.
Zooming out on the surrounding
landscape, a clear grid of intersecting textures is obvious. Green agricultural
land superimposed with informal urban dwellings creep up to the vast desert in
a very distinct iron grid. On the other hand, new developments are spreading on
the adjacent desert land to accommodate the fast growth in population and the
need to get out of the jammed city. This superimposition of formality and
informality creates a series of solids and voids which we used as a guideline
for the layout and later drew upon during the development of our elevations and
masses.
The duality of solid and void in
the mass were further defined by the climatic and urban influences of the plot
and surrounding edges. Wind direction created the first void in the grid to
ensure optimal ventilation to all sides of the block.
The architecture draws on local design such as the use of
screens and overhead roofs and shading devices. A central courtyard,
characteristic of Islamic architectural layouts, together with patios on other
floors and balconies create a pleasant flow of open spaces with different
levels of opacity, and allows for airflow and cross ventilation through the
building, which is an important consideration in view of sustainability and the
climatic context. Projections are used
for shading, creating irregularities that maximize the use of living space,
surface area and open spaces.