The architect was faced with the task of designing not just a certain number of new administrative premises, but creating a city-wide center of attraction, a place where citizens could come for information, or to an exhibition, or just to communicate with each other.
In search of a solution, Kuma proposed a fundamentally new typology of the administrative complex: if it is usually a self-contained building surrounded by parking lots and, if lucky, public spaces, then the square becomes the center of the building. A kind of piazza, where life is in full swing around the clock: thanks to the numerous cafes, shops and other useful and pleasant establishments.
It is around such a square that Kuma erects the frame of the building. To prevent this space from turning into a banal atrium, the architect makes enclosing structures from metal sections, the space between which is filled with glass. Instead of monolithic walls, permeable partitions appear, making the border between the building and the city rather arbitrary.
As a decor, the architect uses his favorite material - wood, which (not for the first or even the second time) is presented in the form of small rectangular panels decorated with a ribbed pattern. By placing them in a checkerboard pattern and at different angles, Kuma makes the walls of the building even more similar to a light, almost weightless screen. And if only wooden panels are used in the "interior" of the square, but on the outer facades of the complex they alternate with solar panels of the same shape and size.
In addition to the actual area and office premises necessary for the city administration, the new complex includes a conference center, a bank, numerous shops, restaurants and cafes, as well as a parking lot.
A. M.
