Un Buen Hogar

Second Award [International Competition Generalitat Valenciana] [Concurso Internacional Generalitat Valenciana]

‘We have to think about replacing waste with nutrients. There are no zero-emission trees; all trees are good for the planet.’ — Michael Braungart, German chemist and creator of the Cradle to Cradle concept.

‘A Good Home’ stops thinking in terms of reducing negative ecological footprints and aspires to have architecture always exert a positive effect. For this, it is necessary for the construction sector to recycle: recover before producing anew. Translated into our language: rehabilitate before constructing. Also, rehabilitation is crucial to maintain the character of buildings and our cities, avoiding aesthetic and urban globalization that turns urban centers into identical copies of each other. Ultimately, rehabilitation is for nourishing waste.

‘A Good Home’ is born with this premise, intervening in the building on Av. Capuchinos and establishing replicable guidelines and actions for the development of architectural, sustainable, and effective recycling throughout the building’s surroundings and the city of Castellón.

As a demonstrative and experimental building, different strategies are explored to improve the existing structure and prove that another way of building and living is possible. These are divided into two categories: the fine-tuning and energy optimization of the existing building and its expansion and activation through construction methods in line with bioconstruction and construction 4.0. In any case, both sets of operations feed into each other, creating a circular system within the building itself, prioritizing the use and reuse of available resources, as well as the incorporation of new materials from natural and local sources.

Location: Castellón, España

Client:  Generalitat Valenciana

Scale:  1.260 m²

Type:  rehabilitation

Program: residential

Status:  competition

Architects:  Martin Lejarraga Oficina de Arquitectura, IDEA Arquitectura, Elvira Carrión, Jose Mª Mateo

Team:  Antonio Pérez,  Alejandro Bosqued, Degree of Freedom, Víctor Pérez.

Publications:  Generalitat Valenciana Pilot Project