HOUSING COMPLEX IN RIGA, HANZAS STREET 3B

Residential building with commercial spaces on 1st floor and underground parking.

Team: J. Mitenbergs, K. Galenieks, I. Lapiņš, P. Spuriņš, I. L. Ramata

Location: Riga, Hanzas street 3B

Status: Competition | winning proposal | finished technical project | under construction

Overground floor area: 18500 m2

Underground floor area: 4879 m2

Total floor area: 23379 m2

Site area: 5795 m2

Building area: 3235 m2

Year: 2021 - 2025

Development Solutions

The development proposal has been designed as a perimeter block building with the main façade facing Hanzas Street, aligned with its mandatory building line. To break up the unusually long street frontage of the new building plot—which is not typical for Riga’s city center—the street-facing building mass is planned to be visually and volumetrically divided into four parts, with slight projections or recesses from the Hanzas Street building line. In this way, the scale of each of the four building sections is brought closer to the scale of Riga’s central development, allowing the new building to integrate harmoniously into the existing urban fabric. Behind the main building volume along Hanzas Street, four perpendicular building wings are planned, logically continuing the overall division of the main façade into four sections. Each of these four parts will have its own vertical circulation core with a staircase and lift shaft, connected to the main corridors providing access to all apartments. Pedestrian access from the Hanzas Street sidewalk to the four stairwells located in the courtyard wings will be provided via two pedestrian passages linking the sidewalk with the inner courtyard area. This arrangement of four building volumes not only ensures compliance with sunlight and daylight requirements for all apartments in the new development but also creates sunlit inner courtyards. These courtyards are planned to be richly landscaped with new trees, shrubs, and ornamental plants, and will also accommodate sunlit children’s playgrounds, active recreation zones for residents, and relaxation areas with benches.

Description of the Functional Layout

The building has been designed with a clear division of functional zones. Apartments in the planned building are located from the 2nd floor upwards, while the 1st floor is reserved for four commercial units with entrances from the Hanzas Street pedestrian sidewalk, and three office spaces accessible from the building’s courtyard. In addition, two spacious pedestrian passages are planned between the commercial units, providing convenient access to the stairwells leading to the apartments. The 1st floor also accommodates a ramp for entry and exit to the underground parking. The underground parking is designed so that incoming and outgoing traffic flows do not intersect. The ramp’s location is functionally convenient for connection to Hanzas Street and the nearby intersection with Kr. Valdemāra Street, while also allowing for the creation of a comfortable, flowing, harmonious courtyard area enriched with landscaping. The building is planned to include apartments with varying numbers of rooms and floor areas, providing potential residents with a sufficiently broad choice. The layouts of the apartments from the 2nd to the 5th floor are similar, with slight differences on the 2nd floor, where access is provided to a children’s playground located on top of the commercial premises volume at the southern end of the site. Some apartment layouts differ partially on the 6th floor, while the 7th-floor apartments are designed with outdoor terraces. All apartments are planned with living space layouts that meet the daylight and sunlight requirements specified in building regulations. For residents’ convenience, the basement level is designed not only to accommodate cars for residents, commercial tenants, and office staff but also to include ancillary storage rooms for the majority of the apartments.

Floor plans

Landscaping of the Building

The unbuilt areas of the plot—at courtyard level as well as partly at the 2nd-floor level—are planned to be landscaped with abundant greenery. The design includes extensive plantings of trees, shrubs, and ornamental plants, as well as decorative flowerbeds with integrated seating benches. Two children’s playgrounds are planned in the courtyard at different height levels, along with active recreation zones, thus providing diverse and extensive leisure opportunities for children, teenagers, and adults alike. Exits from the stairwells into the courtyard are arranged on two sides—towards opposite courtyard zones—thereby increasing convenience for the building’s residents.

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