Pension IV in Opava

In 2012, the city of Opava announced an architectural competition for the design of a building containing small-scale residential units. The realized design placed first in this competition.
The site is located at the junction of two existing urban structures. The development of family houses confronts the panel housing estate here. The proposed building mass connects to the neighboring apartment building from the northeast and complements the existing development. At the same time, it indicates a possible future completion of the entire block. The proposed mass creates a counterpart to the panel houses and allows for the creation of an intimate courtyard environment on the southeast side, to which all apartments are oriented. The courtyard serves as a garden for the residents of the building.
The building includes 52 apartments on five above-ground floors. The apartments are designed in 2 variants - with a separate kitchenette or with a kitchenette in the living space. Each apartment has a balcony or a front garden. Along the northwest facade, there is a glazed corridor with entrances to individual apartments, which also serves for social interactions among residents. The outdoor windows of this corridor are oriented towards the inner windows of the apartments, allowing for good lighting of the apartments and visual contact with activities in the hallway. The corridor is connected to the communication core of the staircase with an elevator, which is visibly articulated towards the street. In addition to the entrance areas, the ground floor features a common room with social facilities, storage boxes, an examination room, and technical spaces.