The new building is located in the north of the city, near La Villette park. His project was entrusted to Slovenian architects as a result of a competition held in 2008. The work was complicated by the inconvenient shape of the site: with a length of almost 200 m, its width is only 11 m. On one side, it is limited by a street with tram tracks, pedestrian and bicycle paths, on the other, there is a tram depot with a football field on the roof.
The building of the hostel consists of two narrow buildings with a height of 29 m, connected by a bridge at the level of the second floor. In the basement there are technical rooms, on the first level - common areas, above - 9 floors with 192 studio apartments. All of them have identical layouts, which simplified design and construction: on an area of 35 m2 there is an entrance area, a bathroom, a wardrobe, a kitchenette, a bed and a work area. Also, each apartment received a balcony facing the street. In contrast to the housing itself, the balconies covered with HPL panels have different configurations. The result is a "complex" main facade, which is typical for many buildings of the OFIS bureau.
The rear facade of the hostel is no less interesting in its solution: it is covered with a metal mesh, forming a rhythmic "quilted" structure. Behind it there are open corridors where the doors of the apartments open. Like the bridge between the buildings, they play the role of public spaces overlooking the center of Paris.
The energy consumption of Basket Apartments is 50 kWh / m2 or less as required by French law. This is achieved through ventilation, extensive use of natural light (including in open corridors and glazed staircases); the thickness of the insulation is 20 cm, the impact of "cold bridges" is minimized, 300 m2 of photovoltaic panels are installed on the roof, and rainwater is used for irrigation of green spaces.
The project budget is 17.5 million euros. The total area of the building is 8500 m2.
N. F.
