SIDE SMÍCHOV LIVING
BUILDING B
The SIDE SMÍCHOV LIVING residential development is located on the southern edge of Smíchov in Prague 5, between Strakonická and Nádražní streets. The site lies close to the Vltava River, Smíchov Railway Station, Císařská louka and the Dvorecký Bridge. It is a part of the city where transport infrastructure, industrial history and the gradual transformation of former brownfield sites have long intersected. The history of the place is closely connected with the river. Smíchov Harbour was established at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries as a technical structure serving the needs of intensive timber rafting on the Vltava River at that time.
The design of the SIDE SMÍCHOV LIVING residential development was created in collaboration between CMCA + UPSTRUCTURE, with David Richard Chisholm as chief architect. Our task was to build on the issued zoning decision documentation by Hlaváček & Partner, transform the scheme into a primarily residential project, and develop it together with the landscape design into a form that meets the requirements of contemporary living.
CONCEPT
The intention of the design is to create a residential development composed of three different urban typologies. The site includes a closed urban block, an open block and a standalone atrium building. This composition makes it possible to respond to the different conditions of the plot, the traffic load of the surrounding streets and the views towards the Vltava River, Vyšehrad and Dívčí hrady.
An important part of the proposal is the system of shared outdoor spaces. These are not conceived as residual areas between buildings, but as a permeable square, courtyards and parks. They complement the residential function with places for everyday movement, short stays, greenery and neighbourhood use.
The proposed typology works mainly with small and medium-sized apartments. The ground floor is complemented by services such as shops, fitness facilities, cafés and other uses that support an active urban ground floor. Parking for residents is located in underground garages.
ARCHITECTURE
The architecture of SIDE SMÍCHOV LIVING works with the contrast between the external street-facing façades and the internal façades oriented towards the courtyards. Towards the streets, the buildings have a more solid and regular expression. They respond to the urban character of Smíchov, the surrounding traffic and the newly emerging city avenue.
Towards the courtyards and the river, the expression of the façades changes. Here, the design works with loggias, balconies, recessed upper floors and a greater overall plasticity. In the upper floors, this principle is partly transferred to the façade facing Nádražní Street, allowing the two characters of the building to meet. The aim is not to create a spectacular gesture, but to distinguish between the public urban edge and the quieter residential environment inside the development.
The building volumes are designed to maximise views from the apartments towards the river, Vyšehrad and the opposite slopes. The height arrangement and the stepping of the volumes within the courtyard also help bring more light into the inner spaces and improve the residential quality of the courtyards.
FACADE
The material concept of the façades was based on the requirements of durability, easy maintenance and an urban character. The design works with a combination of precast concrete, structured cast concrete and textured renders. Ceramic tiles are used in the passages leading through the buildings into the courtyards. The materials were selected to give the façades sufficient depth and detail while maintaining an economically rational solution.
The loggias and balconies are complemented by vertical steel elements in an accent colour. The rotation of individual railing fins increases the privacy of residents while changing the expression of the façade depending on the viewing angle. This principle is used mainly where the façades work with residential detail and everyday contact between users and the outdoor space.
BUILDING B
Building B forms the central part of the site. It is an apartment building with a semi-open courtyard. The building has eight above-ground floors and contains 373 apartments.
Two underground floors are proposed beneath the building. In contact with the street, they accommodate rental units, while also providing parking, storage units, technical rooms and operational facilities for the building.
COURTYARD
The courtyard of Building B is designed as a permeable shared space with a high proportion of greenery. It opens towards views of the Vltava River and Vyšehrad and adds a calmer outdoor environment to the residential structure. At ground-floor level, it is also connected to the private front gardens of the surrounding apartments.
From the sixth above-ground floor upwards, the building volume begins to step back towards the courtyard. This principle brings more daylight into the courtyard and to the apartments on the lower floors, while also creating residential terraces with attractive views for apartments on the upper floors.
LANDSCAPING
The landscape design is an important part of the proposal. Developed in collaboration with the landscape architects from Land05, it works with different spatial characters between the buildings and creates a diverse range of environments for new residents and visitors.
The proposal also includes elements that refer to the river and timber-rafting history of the locality. These motifs are reflected in the design of the street furniture, surfaces, ground-floor details and the interiors of the shared spaces. This is not a literal decoration, but a subtle reminder of the site’s relationship with the Vltava River, Císařská louka and the original activities on the river.
The aim is to create an environment that is not merely an addition to the built structure. Greenery is intended to improve the microclimate, reduce the overheating of paved surfaces and support the everyday use of the outdoor spaces.
PHASING
The project is divided into separate construction phases for Buildings A, B and C. This division enables the gradual implementation of individual parts of the site while coordinating transport, technical and landscape infrastructure.
The construction of the individual buildings is preceded by a phase focused on the technical and transport connection of the site. This includes, in particular, infrastructure connection points and modifications to Nádražní Street.
Project: 2024 – 2026
Realization: 2026
Gross floor area - Building B: 25 000 m2
Number of apartments - Building B: 373 ks
Site Area: 10 500 m2
Location: Smíchov, Praha, Česká republika
Client: UDI group
Architect: CMCARCHITECTS + UPSTRUCTURE
Landscape: Land05
Technical design: AED project
Project management: OM Consulting
Visualizations: FRAMS studio
