Barcelona is actively seeking to develop a more sustainable food system for its residents. The aim is to green its municipal food markets by reducing the distances from which the food is sourced. This initiative has been labeled by the city of Barcelona as “Proximity Food”. We co-opt this title to emphasize our project’s importance in this challenge, where the Food Industry meets Residential uses in the city’s fabric.
As the brief states clearly the first two levels of the plot (Ground Floor and Mezzanine) are exclusively used for the purposes of the Industry, while the rest of it (Plinth level to Roof) is proposed for the residential development. We focused our efforts on creating a circulation scheme that serves equally both aspects of the program and simultaneously cultivating a relationship between the two.
Apart from the cores that connect the two uses, we propose the creation of a terraced garden that links the pedestrian street to the Plinth level while covering the commercial corner of the program. At the same time, the greenhouses developed between the residential units continue through the Plinth level as hydroponic grow spaces for the Industry, acting as green shared spaces for the users.
By connecting the residential street and the Plinth level, we encourage the general public to access the premises of the plot and engage with the food-related social spaces situated on it. One of the main goals of this proposal is to break the “black box phenomenon” of the Food Industry. For this reason, we deem the accessibility to educational and shared spaces as a crucial catalyst between the stakeholders involved.
Incorporating the outcomes of the previous modules of the course, we managed to achieve a coherent synergy between our Structural strategies, Water management, and Envelope design, while utilizing the maximum of our roofs for photovoltaic panels that guarantee a significant level of energy production (approx. 250.000 kW/h).
The results of our proposal offer a glimpse of the potential synergistic living between contemporary Urban Food production and the city of Barcelona. With predominantly naturally sourced materials and the intention to create livable and transparent common grounds, Proximity Food manages to open the Food Industry to the public and allow an exchange that is almost impossible with the current remote locations of food production sites.
