New elementary school and gym

The “Pivot” project, conceived by the architects Bonetti and Bonetti and the engineering studio Lepori, will be built in Magliaso in the coming years.

The new elementary school will be built in an area that is now the soccer field, playground and kindergarten. The name of the project that won the first prize for design
and that sees as head of the Bonetti and Bonetti architects studio in collaboration with the architect Fabio Regazzoni is «Pivot», for the specifications described below.

The project manages to precisely organize a now rather fragmented space that is intelligently reconfigured thanks to a convincing arrangement of volumes that can create high-quality public spaces.

The intent of the designers was to reaffirm the public value of the sector and restore correct relationships with the large scale of the landscape (the “promontory” with the church and the great)
free noro in the west) and with the small scale of the more immediate context: the network of pedestrian paths towards the hill, the kindergarten and the core, the slope in the north.

The project
The fitness studio building on Kantonsstrasse announces the public sector and acts as a fulcrum – a “fulcrum” – between the two proposed reference areas: the arrival area with parking spaces and the one in relation to the large emptiness of the ground floor, that houses the school square.

The new primary school, more distant and more discreet, redesigns the foot of the promontory on which the Kindergarten and the Church of S. Biagio are located, while the new urban warehouses help complete the eastern front of the arrival square and form a fifth towards it the private buildings near the competition site.

The long and narrow building of the new school extends over two levels and, thanks to its low height, offers a clear view of the core and the church.

The school square offers a generous horizontal area that extends over the entire length of the site from north to south. The paved play area and a green area that is open for various purposes find their place in this room. A pedestrian ramp leads to the kindergarten in the direction of the hill to the north.

The high school building, which looks like a structure suspended from eight columns, is organized on two levels to respond to different needs: that of the football club on the ground floor and that of the school in the basement. The decision to bury the gym limits the volumetric impact of the construction while allowing a harmonious relationship with the school and the adjacent schools
Centon canton road. This volume with a sleek and abstract language enters into a dialogue with the size of the landscape and against the backdrop of the Magliaso promontory dominated by the church of San Biagio.

The building is expressed in a powerful structure that lifts a roof to reveal part of the ground floor to the public. This creates a spacious portico in which the football bar and access to the fitness studio are located. In the basement there is the gym, changing rooms, storage rooms and all contents closely related to the gym.

The city warehouses are located on the eastern edge of the arrivals area. The building consists of a simple volume that directs its entrances to the square in continuity with the existing one. The vehicle is accessed via an independent connection to the cantonal road.

The school consists of a repeating reinforced concrete structure that defines a modular opening into which a window is inserted, made up of a large solid glass element and a narrow opening panel. The frames are made of metal.

Energy considerations – Minergie
In view of the large areas of glass and the heavy presence of people, a system with full air heating and internal temperature control was proposed. The calf
Passive heat due to the strong presence of people, devices and, to a small extent, the solar contribution makes a significant contribution to compensating for the total heat losses. In the summer months, solar heat can be disadvantageous and requires careful balancing and control, which is achieved through a low energy transfer factor of the glass (g <0.30) and controlled sun protection according to the orientation of the facades and solar radiation.

The project includes covering with photovoltaic modules on an indicative surface of around 750 m2.

The acoustics of the rooms are regulated by special sound-absorbing elements that also contain the LED lighting. ■

Testo Natascia Valenta / Fonte e Rendering: bonetti e bonetti architetti