CESDA Antibes
In the south of France, the Department of the Alpes-Maritimes is responsible for the management, maintenance and operation of departmental roads. The organization of the road section includes departmental development subdivisions and several operating centers. Since 2004, road maintenance officers have temporarily occupied prefabricated modular buildings located on municipal land. It is here that the Departmental Council decided to build a new building pooling the vehicles used for road maintenance and the offices of administration.
THE SITE.
This basin site has a steep gradient. It is bordered by two roads and a forest composed of wild vegetation punctuated by some remarkable trees. One of the two roads runs along the same slope as this one. Gaining height, we see in the distance a plain and the horizon which magnifies the view.
BUILD THE SITE.
This project was imagined as a supporting infrastructure in dialogue with the large embankments which draw the landscape, attempting to establish an intimate relationship between topography and construction. It fits into the site to reveal its true potential. This creates an exchange between the built space of the new construction and the natural landscape.
We decided to design a rectangular building that asserts itself in its environment. Perimeter walls form both the fence and the boundaries of the service yard. They are expressed by sober lines that pose the project serenely in the landscape and topography of the site.
The simple geometric shape of the volume and its proportions give to the composition all its strength and structure the landscape.
THE PLAN.
The rectangular building (58 x 9 meters) on two levels is anchored in the slope. It is located at the back of the plot to provide maximum space for maneuvering areas and storage. It absorbs part of the unevenness of the land and participates in the design of the site. To establish a link between the top and the bottom, we worked in section. The physical superposition of the two levels corresponds to the functional superposition.
On the ground floor, the garages, changing rooms and the yard; Upstairs staff parking and offices which enjoy the unobstructed view to the horizon. We took advantage of the sloping road along the plot to manage accessibility on these two levels. They are also connected by vertical circulation inside the building.
MATERIALITY / MINERALITY.
The project expresses its contemporary identity through a strong reflection on what is an industrial type building, too often synonymous with "banal hangar".
The architectural writing that results from the constructive approach to the project surprises with its simplicity which is perfectly suited to its use. By virtue of its minerality, the use of rough concrete as a single material reveals the neighboring vegetation. He places the building in its context. A wink to the function of the building, an allegory of the tire footprint of a road vehicle, the concrete mesh placed on the facade allows natural light to be filtered in the offices.
