IN THE TOWN OF Rivas Vaciamadrid, located 15 kilometers to the southeast of the capital,  the Plaza Ecópolis project comprises three parts: public space, elementary school and toy library, and regenerates a plot – right by an industrial complex and surrounded by transport infrastructures –, turning it into a space for social interaction.

The project stems from the idea that the transformation of the city must be rethought starting from the public space, understood as the physical realm of collective expression and sociocultural diversity, and proposes reconquering that public space through the free and unprejudiced gaze of children. 

The technologies used are integrated in a design adapted to the climatic conditions and that relies firstly on passive techniques for climate control to minimize the use of energy and resources. 50% of the built surface is partially buried to benefit from the land’s thermal inertia and 700 square meters of south-facing facade are made with glass that blocks out the sun and with thermal insulation (U=1.80 W/(m2K), solar factor 0.52). A textile layer over a light metallic structure wraps the interior volume of concrete, and is partially mobile to adapt to the different sun positions. The active technologies for climate control combine adiabatic cooling, thermal solar energy, radiant floor heating and displacement ventilation. The combination of passive and active energy-saving systems has allowed the building to obtain the highest eco-label of Spanish law (A grade).

The building extends its limits into the plaza displaying some of the functional processes that are usually concealed in the urban evacuation systems, to create a greater civic awareness of the need for a responsible use of natural resources. The water sewage system, using macrophyte plants, manages to recycle 100% of the building’s water needs, including irrigation. All the purified water is stored under the ground within a gravel tank that is part of the plaza pavement. This artificial landscape based on a residue-resource combination evokes the natural conditions of the riverbanks. An artificial topography along the perimeter of the plot confines the space of the square and buffers the heavy traffic of trucks and the busy activity of a harsh industrial environment. When inside the Plaza Ecópolis it is easy to forget the urban context and imagine a different one closer to nature.