A&F  architects geneva

In order to ensure the integration of the new buildings, to the spatiality of the Collège des Parcs and to meet the needs mentioned in the competition program, the project strategy is developed according to two key interventions:

1. A light and through building  (which opens up views of the lake landscape)

2. A buried building  (which preserves the South playground as much as possible)

The new building  is part of the continuity of the built front of the Rue de la Côte with a height at the gutter of 14m.  It is dedicated to the school program with the 8 additional classrooms at the existing college. It is made up of four floors on the Rue de la Côte side and five floors on the courtyard side. The main entrance on Rue de la Côte welcomes children with a linear hall that leads directly to the two classrooms upstairs, while on the lower ground floor on the south side, the building opens onto the courtyard with a space dedicated to teachers. It extends outside to create a covered courtyard according to the requirements of the program.  Its light spirit and its crossing typology give the building a playful character that invites you to explore it to dive into the landscape. The concrete exo-structure encases the glazed envelope, which lets the shimmer of the children's dynamic activity shine through on the outside.

The building is dedicated to the program of two sports halls. It is part of the current esplanade which constitutes the base of the existing college. In order to preserve the South playground as much as possible, the layout follows the path of the existing retaining wall. The old wall is effectively replaced by the new construction, becoming the facade of the building. For 2/3 of its height, the exterior result remains faithful to the image of a massive base and evokes the history of the place. The stone recovered during the demolition could be reused.  The crowning occupies the upper third of the new façade. Composed by the assembly of superimposed elements in precast concrete. The expression helps define the classic urban character. The device serves both as a sunshade and as a light filter. The repetition of the vertical elements is punctuated by the frame of the supporting structure of the rooms, i.e. a regular spacing of 1.80 meters. The approach is simple, the intervention always continues on the same language: the mineral base (in stone) and the superposition of a mineral crown (concrete) which represents the testimony of a contemporary architectural act. The new base, anchored to the ground, ends with an aerial coronation, which connects the earth with the sky.