Massive Green-Roofed Europa City
Danish firm BIG has won an international design competition for a new green-roofed city, currently in the works for the suburbs of Paris. Europa City is a massive sustainable project topped off with a huge park that will combine the urban density of Paris with the bucolic setting of the suburbs. Intimate streets, connections to the metro, trains and adjacent highways as well as a connection to farmland will differentiate this master-planned city. It will combine all the convenient amenities of living in a city (like shops, offices, culture and activities) with the healthy qualities of living in the country.
A good example of urban planning should start from a strong concept and the detailed explanations and direct, powerful gesture to arrive at an appropriate site and surroundings new program implemented.
I chose these because I liked the model first that the whole assembly seems to bring the land changes due to green roof idea. This requires an approach that does not alter the existing topography, all functions take a green tire is practically part of the site.
Another thing that caught my attention was the need to propose additional functions absolutely necessary in a community. Buildings in the public and semi public and utilities that find their place in the community without affecting the original essence of living. The entire urban socket seems to be based on the organic principle point of interest is a central space that involves collecting residents and bystanders to develop a series of activities with the purpose of leisure.
I do not understand the project and what I do not like is the idea of total roof. I noticed the plans and renderings that this socket has a very high roof, continuously, sometimes with and sometimes some places covered with cover glass. tend to think that natural light and ventilation are very important issues in large-scale urban planning. So I would opt for a lighter coverage of the entire system can only cover apelang the idea but maybe semi controlled.
The project began with the context Parisian suburbs and countryside and combined that with the qualities that make Paris a world-class city – intimate streets, public transportation, culture, restaurants, and shopping all close together. The semi-circular shape evolved after careful planning to create a system of streets in the round with perpendicular streets shooting out from the center. Public transportation into Europe City is convenient with metro and train access and the highway runs right by it as well. Inside the project, the pedestrian-friendly streets encourage walking or biking and small busses will operate in a circuit.
Europa City will include shopping, restaurants, cultural activities along with housing and office spaces. The project will also include a ski slope and a pool, which are expected to operate in sync to provide energy efficient heat and cooling exchange. The entire project will be covered in an undulating green roof with views of the Parisian skyline. Not only does this roof serve as a large public park, it also works as insulation and will treat grey water and infiltrate rainwater for use in the city. Europa City is expected to be built as a model sustainable city that combines the efficiency of an urban area with the health benefits of living in the country.
