The concept of a shopping mall under the cartoon name "Chipmunks" assumed the location of a large number of retail space (almost 130,000 sq.2) on a completely empty territory on the outskirts of Novosibirsk. The place is remote and empty, not limiting the architects in any way, but located on the highway connecting Novosibirsk proper with the Akademgorodok and Berdsk included in the agglomeration. Traffic on the track is quite intense, so there shouldn't be a shortage of visitors.
The customer liked the complex and creative approach implemented by Alexander Popov and Dmitry Vasiliev in the project of the Respublika shopping and entertainment complex in Kiev (which has not yet been completed due to lack of funding), and he turned to the architects with a request to create a project that would meet the functional program of the complex. The program was developed by UTG specialists and is quite standard: a four-level space with parking, shopping galleries, food courts and entertainment functions is united around a central atrium.
Nevertheless, the architects found the opportunity to functionally and qualitatively distinguish their project among a large number of existing and under construction shopping and entertainment centers in Novosibirsk. “All our solutions should be interesting and beneficial not from one point of view, but from several points of view at once,” Alexander Popov, co-founder and director of the ARCHIMATIKA bureau, reveals the secret of success. “If we take into account only one factor, then it will turn out to be either too expensive, which in the current economic conditions is simply unacceptable, or not optimal from a functional point of view, which also will not add competitiveness to the object”.
One of these solutions was the abandonment of the usual underground parking: the entire first floor of the complex was unexpectedly given over to the parking lot. First, it made it possible to reduce the cost of construction in a harsh climate. Secondly, the site is located in a low-lying area and the owners would constantly face problems with groundwater. Thirdly, the highway runs two or three meters higher than the site and the artificially raised main volume of the complex is much better "read" from the window of a passing car. Finally, the architects found it easier for visitors to orient themselves and park exactly under the desired store, quickly get up and not push a heavy trolley far. The problem of supplying and unloading goods arising from such a layout was solved with the help of a special ramp on the back of the building. The space under it, again, will not be lost, due to it it is planned to increase the number of parking spaces.
The second essential point is the great attention to social function. Whether we like it or not, shopping centers are increasingly becoming a place for a long family pastime and the issue of the quality of the environment and the level of entertainment in such a situation is important for the success of the project. “Of course, we must not forget that this is a certain compromise, a closed space with an artificial microclimate will always give way to an open urban public space, but in our cities there are so many such places for recreation and entertainment, and the weather is so capricious that the creation of indoor atrium public spaces remains appropriate - says Alexander Popov, - only on condition that due attention is paid to the quality of the environment being created, both in functional, architectural and design aspects. " Indeed, in addition to the standard set of cafes, restaurants, children's attractions and a cinema, the new shopping and entertainment center includes: a concert hall, an oceanarium, exhibition spaces, an interactive science museum and a children's theme park "Minopolis". Moreover, two helipads are planned on the roof, one of which will indeed provide additional transport opportunities in conditions of long distances, and the second will be used as another attraction for visitors. All this is not thought of at all as another spectacular and, by and large, not too necessary "toy", architects are even ready to completely abandon the idea if it is not possible to achieve its full-fledged functioning.
Exterior solutions, of course, should actively demonstrate to others the modern, technologically and aesthetically advanced content of the complex. On the other hand, the façade should represent the shopping mall's own brand, formulated by the name: "BURUNDUKI". However, what if, by the will of evolution, the chipmunks in technical and aesthetic progress (perhaps so far) have not shown themselves in any way? But these thrifty and selecting only the best nuts - how consonant with the very idea of the mall! - The animals are found in local forests and love cedar cones. Having shifted the accents, the architects turned their attention to this very product, a landmark for Siberia. The structures of the complex are planned to be made of monolithic reinforced concrete using metal structures only to cover large spans. All this will be covered with utilitarian sandwich panels that provide the required performance. But already on top of a rather simple and inexpensive "box" a shell will appear, the structure of which resembles the scales of a cedar cone. It will be made of aluminum on the facades, and glass on the roof above the atrium. “Of course, no one was going to create a comic, folklore image and build a literal giant bump, rather, it’s such a“space dream of a chipmunk,”smiles Alexander Popov. - I hope that everything will work out and something very “tasty” will really be hidden behind the futuristic shell.
