THE SKY PARK RESIDENTIAL

When the results of the competition to transform the Čulenova zone into a residential district were published in 2010, not only the bold proposal, but also the name of its author - Zaha Hadid, caused a stir. On the site of a dying industrial enclave, a dynamic set of elliptical towers was created in the middle of a vast park, protectively surrounding the Jurkovič heating plant – the only monument to the site’s past. Until then, Bratislava had never seen such fluid architecture or such a bold urban gesture. The project was named The Sky Park, and it was when the term  of “Bratislava downtown” came to existence.

The local partner of GFI got involved at the initial stage, when the competition vision had to be turned into a real form. The plot was enlarged, requiring an adjustment of the concept and a response to the local context. The number of towers was reduced, they were given more surrounding space and they grew to a height of 104.2 meters. Their shape – gently curved, erected on an elliptical ground plan – combined with a distinctive facade geometry, brightened up the previously inconspicuous silhouette of the city. The facades are made of an exoskeleton with a relief profile made of 3,500 GRC panels manufactured in Denmark especially for this project.

However, The Sky Park is more than just architecture. It is an urban park with an elaborate landscape composition of a raised plateau smoothly responding to the terrain, water and the movement of people. It organically connects towers, public spaces, playgrounds and rest areas, respects the historic heating plant and completes street corridors with smaller pavilion objects. It represents a new way of thinking about the city - open, confident and contemporary.

 a zoning project

a building permit project

an implementation project

an actual construction project

the author's supervision