Requalification of the Vicentino Quarter

Improving the quality of life of the resident population

Data
Number of units: 20
Site area: 6800 m2
Building area: 2010 m2
Public Space Area: 4705 m2

Description
The requalification project of the Vicentino Quarter in Cantanhede included the restoration of the quarter dwellings and the improvement of the surrounding public space, covering a total area of 6800 m2. The intervention on the edified focused on the rehabilitation of 20 dwellings, which together total a construction area of 2100 m2. These dwellings, all single storey, vary between 2, 3 and 4 bedrooms, forming a homogeneous block, all very degraded and with severe pathologies. In order to maintain the exterior image of the edified and the distinctive features of the quarter, the outer quarter boundaries facing the surrounding streets were maintained, thus promoting the restoration and preservation of the existing exterior walls. In the interior of the quarter, the limits of the dwellings and their patios were adjusted, which

meant the implementation of new exterior walls. This redefinition of the dwellings boundaries, in addition to the reorganization and optimization of the interior spaces of each unit, aimed at a more equitable distribution of areas to all inhabitants and the definition of direct accesses to the rear patios in the vast majority of lots. The requalification also implied the expansion of each of the dwellings. For this purpose, a highly pragmatic approach to resource optimization was favoured, which resulted in the adoption of a standard module to be added to existing volumes. This module added the new toilets and kitchen facilities of the various dwellings, which being the most infrastructure spaces, could thus be properly implemented without significant impact with pre-existing elements. The other spaces, namely the bedrooms and living rooms, spaces with less

need for wiring systems, were more easily implemented on the existing built volume. The intervention also covered the replacement of existing sloping roofs (including its coating and all supporting structure), as well as its extension in the extended areas, keeping geometry and shape of the roofs of the original spaces (hip roofs). In this context, the implementation of new exterior and / or interior walls, in addition to the functional aspects mentioned above, has ensured an increase in the structural strength of buildings. The proposed solution shows a balanced and careful intervention, reconciling the respect and preservation of the characteristic image of the quarter with a deep requalification of the units and their respective patios, greatly improving the living conditions of this population.