The main purpose of the project is to design a public space and a public building, which blends in with the wider network of the city’s public spaces. At the same time, we wanted to create a welcoming building, open and friendly to the citizens. The plot consists of a rich and dense natural environment which sets the limits and the character of the proposed project.

The footprint of the building flows between the tree lines and the dense and sparse green clusters in order to protect the existing natural state as much as possible. The outline of the building fills in the plot, reflects the character and the history of the environment and pops out of it naturally. The existing environment “gives birth” to the building and at the same time, it creates its dwelling. The landscape generates the main mass of the building that looks like it is a part of it.

Its “cellular form” indicates the introvert character of the project. Nonetheless, all the disruptions of the continuity on the building’s main volume and the various entrances, accesses and paths, as well as the green roof, connect the project with the environment, blur the limits between “in”, “out” and “in-between”, create permeability and accessibility in order to create a totally extrovert and open building.

The internal planning and organisation of the building’s program and the clear separation between the different services with their individual accesses create a final result that functions simultaneously as a whole and as separate and individual units. The interior arrangement of the working spaces gives flexibility to the employees since it can operate as an open space plan, or it can be divided into private spaces with strict limits.

The building is entirely designed according to sustainable and resilient principals. The surrounding greenery, boosted by the added water surfaces offer natural shadowing and create a microclimate, which decreases the energy requirements of the project and its ecological footprint. Also, the shading system which has been set in the east, south and west facades control the impact of the undesirable sunlight during the hot periods.