How can an urban apartment building be developed without turning it into a developer's product? The revitalisation of an apartment building in Prague's Vysočany offers a different approach to rental housing in Prague.
On the border between Libeň and Vysočany, a rooftop extension has been added to a building dating from the beginning of the 20th century. The owners, two sisters who inherited the house, decided to carry out the first extensive revitalisation of the building since it was built. Their ambition was to develop the family property step by step and adapt it to contemporary needs without suppressing its original character. The initial impulse was the need to repair the roof. Only during the preparations did it become clear that this was precisely where an opportunity lay to add a new layer of housing to the building and increase its long-term value.
The budget was not limitless; the aim was neither to maximise returns nor to carry out a complete rebuild. It was precisely a certain degree of restraint that became one of the main principles of the project. The building is not perfect, and its alterations do not strive for absolute perfection either. What emerged instead is a carefully considered contemporary layer inserted into the existing structure of the roof truss: the new is openly joined to the old, the shared spaces are cultivated, and the internal infrastructure is repaired.
Four small-scale apartments have been created at roof level. The new structures are inserted into the original roof truss and further develop the overall mass of the building. By cutting the truss back behind the original cornice, a recessed façade with French windows and a continuous terrace was created on the street side, instead of the typical attic lit only by roof windows. Two of the four apartments are designed as duplexes with inserted bedroom volumes that open into the courtyard through large dormers and offer a spatial connection also to the terrace facing the courtyard block. In terms of layout, these are small, condensed apartments whose added value lies precisely in the terraces and the vertical generosity of the space.
The old roof truss has been preserved to a large extent and has become a natural part of the new interiors, combined with exposed steel elements. Although it would have been simpler, both economically and structurally, to replace the entire truss, the project gave priority to preserving as much of the original structure as possible and restoring it gradually. The material authenticity of the new interventions complements the rawness of the original elements, which remain visible wherever this was possible. The interiors allow the original chimneys and other distinctive structures of the building to stand out.
The construction process played a significant role in the work with the roof truss and influenced the overall form of the extension. All sixteen apartments remained occupied throughout the renovation, so the roof could not simply be removed and rebuilt. The truss was therefore restored in individual phases so that the building remained protected at all times.
Renovating the attic in the form of an extension, which gave the newly created apartments unexpected spatial qualities, was possible because the building does not lie within a heritage conservation zone. The project could therefore work with the roof plane of a historic apartment building in a way that is rather exceptional in Prague. The new layer places a subtly understated crown on the building. From the street it remains almost invisible; on closer inspection, only the slender balcony railings reveal it. In distant views, for example from Libeň railway station, it becomes part of the wider context of the roofscape in this part of the city.
The project is not, however, limited to the creation of new apartments. The courtyard façade was repaired and, as far as possible, the communal staircase hall and internal circulation spaces were also refined. Contrary to common practice, the new lift does not occupy the open space of the beautiful staircase; it is inserted into an empty light well instead. It was important not to redraw the entire building according to contemporary ideas of ideal housing, but to adapt it in an affordable way so that it can continue to function naturally for decades to come.
The Harfa project represents an alternative to the increasingly dominant model of developer-led housing and construction in Prague. Instead of maximising capacity, it works with appropriateness. And instead of radical transformation, it shows that even partial interventions can significantly improve the quality of an entire building and extend its lifespan while retaining the architectural authenticity of the new intervention. The design explores the boundaries of individuality in rental housing and looks for ways to offer small apartments something extra.
