Who can change the city? It is evident that the residents of large centers somehow possess the power to change cities.
On the one hand, the figure of the architect has the knowledge to act in various scales of the development of the city, such as: Develop buildings with distinct programs, which compose and define the urban space, such as; schools, churches, hospitals, homes, buildings or even projects on larger scales such as urban and strategic planning for neighborhoods and entire cities. Although architects often place themselves in the role of urban thinkers, they generally remain as spectators, while other agents, with less understanding of the urban dynamics, assume such role.
The architects do not need to limit themself to thinking about buildings in isolation, they can go beyond and must help to think about the city. Use their knowledge to be an articulator of urban transformation, identifying problems in the city and proposing solutions that go beyond built works, ‘transversalizing’ in proposals capable of uniting various agents of urban development, such as citizens, politicians, entrepreneurs, builders, etc. It is with this articulating impetus of the city that we seek to investigate ways to transform it.
It is with this intention, to position itself as a thinker of the city, that the firm decides to help think about its own urban context, the city of Londrina. The urban landscape is in a constant of construction development, with several buildings, of different scales being built every day. In contrast to these new buildings, several structures that also have an impact on the city and a historical relationship with the municipality, are stopped and semi-abandoned. Thus, we decided not to propose something from scratch, but to start from a discussion on top of a pre-existing structure, which is related to the history of the city and is in need of intervention. With these contexts on the table, the office wonders, what existing structure needs intervention and can impact the urban context of Londrina?
Among several structures that need a contemporary look, the sports complex of Londrina is one of them. This set includes the Café Stadium, built in 1976, the Ayrton Senna International Autodrome 1992, a 1992 kart track, a 1993 cycling track and a sports square. Some of these structures of the complex are in operation, but the quality of the entire complex falls well short of contemporary demands and standards.
The Stadium, with its insertion at the top of the slope and its semicircle shape open to the center, can be noticed from numerous regions of the city, its lit spotlights announce to the city that "today is game day", its field was once the scene of great football moments and important events, but today, its structure is far from a high-level stadium, Whether it's to host games or to host large-scale events.
Thus, within all the structures of the complex, the Coffee Stadium is the most unique, not only for the scale, but also for the history and the possibility of becoming something bigger. The office decides to embrace the Cafézão - as the regulars call it - to propose a discussion in the form of a project, which puts this icon back to contemporary debates about the city, that the structure of the stadium is reinvented and thus can become a catalyst for the development of the city.
The Stadium rests on a hill in its semi-circular shape, which opens onto the city centre, and its floodlights, when turned on, announce game day. These are strong premises that mark the stadium and as we want to look to the future and not forget the past, the proposal must start from a dialogue between what the stadium is and what it can become. We want to keep the highlight that the building has at the top of the slope, for this, we maintain the spatial configuration, with the lawn in the center and bleachers facing the city. Next, we deployed a new roof, now oval-shaped, that surrounds the entire perimeter of the field and will help organize the program. To the north, the roof protects fans from the weather, while to the south, the slender double metal pillars support the roof and allow the beautiful view to the center to be maintained. The matter that covers people is a tense screen, which just like the old spotlights, when lit turns into a large lantern, which will announce not only the events to the city, but announce a new moment for the Café Stadium.
Under the roof, which is framing the downtown skyline, a large square facing the street is created. The square organizes the access in two parts: at the bottom is the access of the players and service; and at the level of the square, the access of the fans. Below the square are the service programs, and along with that, its programmatic is expanded to allow the stadium to be at the current standards of a top-notch stadium. On the lower level were inserted new locker rooms for each team with: massage rooms, hot tubs, larger bathrooms, press and coach, all these environments give access to the mixed zone that leads to the lawn. Still on the same level were positioned: the rooms for TV stations, press conference, medical center and technical areas such as workshop and warehouse. The upper part of the square invites people to stay or enter through the new ticket offices at gates A and B.
The hilltop accesses, called C and D, continue to maintain the iconic upper entrance. The height of the roof is raised not only to allow the view and protect people, but to create space for the suspended volumes of the new cabins. Under the roof are also the volumes of the new bars and bathrooms that have been expanded to receive a larger audience and now, the bars are set back from the edge of the bleachers and facing the lawn, allowing those who are buying food and drink or going to and from the bathroom to have visual access to the field. The concrete of the bleachers gives way to chairs, which in shades of blue pay homage to the city team.
We want through our role, as articulators of the city, to launch this proposal of the stadium, not with the intention of having a definitive character, but with a posture open to what the city has to say and latent for the change. We want this idea to be a kick-start for a dialogue between the stadium, the team, the population and the city hall. Thus the project for the new Café Stadium, seeks through punctual interventions, to bring on the light of its spotlights the discussion about a structure that has been erased.
