The new health center assumes itself as a new centrality in the urban fabric of Santa Iria da Azóia. Placed in the top of the existing terrain, the building is preceded by a new green public space, oriented towards the south and with a wide view over the bridge and the river.
The building is organized around three patios each with a different character and sense of privacy. The central patio is the core of the building and works as the background for the waiting moments and circulation. This patio offers the users a clear overview of the building’s organization making it easy to move around, in a logic of transparency and functional clarity that should be characteristic of this kind of public building.
The other two patios assure the needed privacy: the longitudinal patio located along the west side of the building works as a visual background for the doctors’ offices; while the patio on the north side is connected to the physiotherapy rooms and functions as an exterior space for exercising, in a quiet and private surrounding.
program: Health Center architecture: João Fagulha, Raquel Oliveira sustainability consultant: Raul Moura landscape architecture: Oficina dos Jardins – Inês Ferrão e Sónia Caldeira structural engineer: PRPC engenheiros – João Paulo Cardoso client: Loures Municipality area: 1.226 m2 budget: 1.096.060€ location: Santa Iria da Azóia, Portugal year: 2018 status: competition