PRECEDENT STUDIES

S U R R Y   H I L L S   C O M M U N I T Y 

C E N T R E   P R O P O S A L

• Addresses Crown St as its main facade.

• New building footprint has allowed for a laneway between buildings to be created. This allows the neighboring cafe/restaurant to open into the lane, increasing public atmosphere and encouraging involvement.

• The building fabric has conformed to traditionalist urban design form of buildings enclosing space, rather than buildings within space. This is noted by the facade sitting flush against the street.

S T I C K S   A N D   S T O N E S

a new public library in Villanueva, Columbia

Villanueva, Colombia, a small town 130 miles east of Bogotá, has long been caught in that country’s bloody 44-year civil war. It is known for its oil and its frequent spasms of violence; in 2001, right-wing guerrillas kidnapped 200 local farmers. Unsurprisingly, the town’s school system is in shambles. In an effort to right Villanueva’s sinking fortunes, the Colombian government turned to architecture.

A Modernist building in dialogue with the regional design vernacular, Villanueva’s new public library features local materials such as timber and river stones.

The 37,000-square-foot library commissioned for Villanueva—two enormous wood-and-stone blocks, one on the ground and the other raised on pillars—was built piece by piece by the community it serves. The focal point of its minimalist concrete-and-metal interior is an outdoor plaza; in a town that has been a playground for rival paramilitary groups, the library has become both a refuge and an agent of change.