FIELD OF INTERACTIONS - MUNICIPAL OF CHALKIDA

Architecture: Micromega in collaboration with Georgia Mpountouraki

STATUS: 1st Priza at National Architectural Competition

Design Team: Alexandros Zomas, Mara Papavasileiou, Georgia Mpountouraki

Structural Engineering: Nasos Mantzanas, Fotis Kondis

E/M Engineering: TETRAS A.E.M.

Students of Architecture: Marianthi Papaggelopoulou, Georgia Salta

The market as an architectural palimpsest
The main goal of the architectural proposal is to enhance the character of the Municipal Market as a monument, by emphasizing the sequential construction phases and using a unique contemporary architectural vocabulary for the new additions. On Kriezotou, Arethousis and Venizelos streets' facades, marking the late neoclassical section of the monument, a new skin is placed with wooden frame, and forms the new facades and the new roofs, on the trace of the original volumes.

Wooden canopies are placed in front of the interior facades of those buildings, while in the southwest corner of the market, a new building is designed on the trace of the original. The part of the monument that belongs to the second historical phase, placed within the modern style, marks the main facade of the Market to the city.

The facades are designed following the existing proportions and traces, while the canopies that provide shade are placed at Neofutou street. On the first floor one can find the administration pole as well as the reception of visitors who will be hosted on the rooftop for cultural events. The central open-air aisle between the inner parts of main building, is enriched with a canopy, where a kiosk and an information point are located, in an effort to enhance the promenade from the city to the market and restore the monument's relationship with the urban surroundings.

Regarding the uses that will be hosted within the Market, the main objective for a successful public integration is the active implication of the civil society. Thus, it is proposed to create a core of alternating activities, dedicated to the community with a focus on traditional arts and crafts. It is also proposed to promote the coexistence of commercial with cultural and educational activities, the integration of uses with complementary or extended calendars and the planning of events in the open spaces of Market and Square.

the Market Square as an organic extension

In terms of public space, today the square stands as an elevated urban void within the historic city center area rather than a square of the city. The main design principles of the new square include integrating it into a broader network of pedestrian streets, blending the boundaries between the square and the surroundings, connecting the square with the market through the materiality of the ground and creating three main thematic w ithin the square: the market, the stage and the courtyard.