The project is located in the main Plaza de la Vila in the little town of Sencelles in Spain, an important space for the citizens as it is bordered by the Parish Church, the Town Hall, the post office and the local bar “Café Cán Paris”. The bus to Palma stops in the plaza.
During the last decades the plaza had lost its use as an effective public space and was used principally as a parking lot. Issued by the mayor’s office, the competition brief called for the reevaluation of the vehicular circulation throughout the town in order to recover the plaza’s historic function as a meeting place for its citizens and as a venue for markets, dances, processions and other events. Once awarded the design, a process of citizen participation helped further define the needs and desires of the local residents.
One of the project’s main objectives was to provide universal access across the whole plaza and to each building fronting it. A new pedestrian ramp was designed to connect the two platforms that divided and separated the space, while at the same time increasing visual and physical connectivity across the square. The ramp is integrated into a field of fixed stone bleachers that offer seating for the events held in the plaza throughout the year.
The new public space is now a large meeting area and a place of social integration.
Read more about the project here.
Recommended by Luisa Bravo
More Stories
A stealthy reimagining of urban public space by Elizabeth Diller
Security by Design: Protection of public spaces from terrorist attacks
The Council for European Public Space presents new perspectives for a European public sphere