Cantilever Balcony & Main Square of Plaza Mayor
This is a project by ch+qs architects and it is located at Almazán, Soria, Spain. Project's program: Refurbishment of the Plaza and the surrounding areas + cantilever balcony over Douro river. There are twenty two images for Cantilever Balcony & Main Square of Plaza Mayor.
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- © ch+qs architects
Project details
Project images
Designer's statement
Brief history:
Settled in the middle of the Castillian Landscape, the historical town of Almazan appears strategically on the top of a walled hill, and in the higher point is where the historical remains are surrounded by the piazza, with a strong medieval flavor.
Surrounded by extraordinary monumental buildings, the Plaza Mayor de Almazan is shaped as a clear example of "Spanish Square" in the historic city. Its location on top of a watchtower and the edge of a meander of the Douro river, makes it a public space with a great landscape value, sharing the limelight with the sXII Wall, the Palace of Hurtado de Mendoza (sXV) and the Church of San Miguel (sXII).
In the edition of "Statistical Gazetteer-historical-Spain and its overseas possessions", edited by Pascual Madoz in 1845, one of the earliest descriptions of the Plaza de Almazan, the square is described as "nearly perfect rectangular", and added as a notable feature that "only has a corner".
Prior to our intervention, the place retained its original form and its grim character, but it was largely occupied by surface car parking and various obstacles; the city and its inhabitants detected this and many others shortcomings which were reflected in a previous report, which inspired the drafting of the specifications of the competition.
As a principal desire featured in the competition bases was to reorder the square, release of obstacles and achieve a cleaner environment which highlight both day and night the remarkable historical buildings that make up the main attractions of this town.
Also from the beginning we were asked to rescue the historic connection with the beautiful surrounding landscape, facilitating the direct output from the square to the old walls over the river Douro, and solving the stair to go down to the river.
The commission:
The commission was obtained in the open ideas competition organized by the Almazan City Council in 2008, looking forward to solve a list of problems and necessities neighbours and rulers detected in their town.
The intervention, 6900 m2 approximately, focuses on the recovery of the historical values of the Plaza and its relationship to the cultural and landscape in which it is located
The list of contest rules called for achieving "conceptual, typological and architectural Plaza, its connection to the Paseo de Ronda and the streets rushing it" and also "create a continuous floor spreading throughout the Plaza absorbing the existing slopes and solving the problems of accessibility to historic buildings that define, highlighting the monumental character of the set"
Important point of the proposal are the two new viewpoints, "precariously" cantilevered, that "sew" the square with the beautiful surrounding landscape: one accessed from the Main Square, overlooking the landscape, and another on the river Duero, with access from Round River and completes the action in perimeter zones. Like the ladder, the viewpoints appear in the scene as timeless architectural elements, redesigning the sequence of viewpoints of the river and the woods surrounding the Plaza and Creating a walking tour around San Miguel and the City through gateways.
The choice of wood as main material and the use of a cantilevered structure that minimizes contact with existing buildings, enabling integration of these new buildings respects the historical perspective of Almazan
People now enjoy the terraces of the bars placed in the square, the space gained to the car and rest under trees in relaxing areas.
Tourists and residents, many of them retired, enjoy a completely accessible parcour.
The performance has dignified the villa and has boosted tourism, one of the main drivers of the town's economy.
![[L-R]
John Patkau and
Patricia Patkau](/cdn/images/t/p/s/t/pstt9xd.jpg)
![[L-R]
Kazumi Kudo and
Hiroshi Horiba](/cdn/images/t/p/f/x/pfx3mbh.jpg)
![[L-R]
Stefan Antoni,
Philip Olmesdahl and
Greg Truen](/cdn/images/t/p/c/x/pcxya6a.jpg)
![[L-R]
Jan Tesar and
Jan Stempel](/cdn/images/t/p/x/k/pxkeec8.jpg)
