Garitage Park, Sofia - Masterplan and Phase 1
Sofia, Bulgaria
Garitage Park is a mixed-use district of offices, homes, a school, sports facilities and a central park on a 16.7-hectare site in Sofia, opposite Business Park Sofia. The masterplan for the whole site was designed by SGI Architects & Masterplanners, then trading as Stephen George International. SGI won the commission in a 2012 international design competition against Chapman Taylor and two other international practices, and also produced the full technical design of Phase 1.
The Garitage Park masterplan was certified under BREEAM Communities 2012 at Final stage, rated Excellent (71%), with Stephen George International named as architect. It was the first BREEAM Communities certification in Central and Eastern Europe. Every later phase of Garitage Park has been built within the framework this masterplan set.
The total area of each of the office buildings is 30,000 m2, and each can accommodate about 2,400 jobs. They are an integral part of the overall planning of the complex and help to create a kind of new city center. In the design, the main focus is on the comfort of the users of the environment, by using proportions consistent with the human scale, natural materials, and optimal communication links.
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The vision of the office buildings is simple and modern. The idea of the complex is to form a frame along Okolovrasten Pat Street, visually integrating with the formed secondary administrative center in this area of the city (Business Park), while playing the role of a natural buffer between the busy road artery and the quiet residential area. The environment provided in the southern part of the complex. The façade layout of the buildings seeks maximum transparency, in order to create a feeling of lightness and airiness in their perception. Atrium spaces are formed on the northern facade towards Okolovrasten Pat Street along with the entire height of the building. Given the façade indifference of the buildings, there is a need for easy visual recognition, achieved with a different color for each staircase visible in the atrium space.
The residential area of Garitage Park covers an area of 60,000 m2 and is part of the overall development of the complex. It includes 16 multi-family buildings as well as 40 single-family houses. The basic principles of sustainability and comfort of living are taken into account in the spatial planning of the area. They are also part of the requirements of the BREEAM Communities certificate, which the complex received, for the first time in Eastern Europe.
The formation of residential buildings is a consequence of the volumetric-spatial study of the projected area, in terms of human perception in a real urban environment. In the case of facade solutions, the creation of additional depth through various architectural layers of rhythm, raster, materials, and colors. The spaces around the residential buildings are designed to provide residents with green and organic park environment, complemented by playgrounds, a barbecue area, and nearby outdoor sports fields.
The constructive solution of the dwellings is based on an orthogonal modular reinforced concrete skeleton, which contributes to the optimization of the construction processes and efficiency in the execution. The planned roof solar panels and automated systems reduce costs and accumulate green energy for domestic use. Sustainable architectural details at each level are used to achieve high levels of sound insulation. Housing provides a sustainable aesthetic environment for people looking for quality and value of living.
