Social Housing by the M-30 Motorway

Description

This controversial social housing project was initiated by the Madrid Housing Institute (IVIMA, in Spanish), which organised a limited competition in 1986 to rehouse families from the shanty town Pozo del Huevo in Vallecas. The winning project, designed by Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oíza, was born out of the need to shield the area from the nearby M-30 motorway, which is a constant source of noise and pollution. To this end, the design features a substantial brick exterior wall that wraps around itself to protect the communal core of the residential units. The vertical cores are on the outside, which helps to reduce noise from the busy road, while in the living rooms of the houses they face the courtyard. The treatment of the interior façade, defined by large openings and a vibrant colour scheme, contrasts sharply with the rugged exterior. Despite the exceptional quality and good intentions behind Oíza’s project, there has been criticism from those who use the building. Some users have commented that the curvilinear forms of the building pose a challenge when it comes to furnishing certain rooms. In addition, the introverted design of the building may have contributed to the alienation of a community. This segregation began even before people moved into the building, as evidenced by protests from neighbours against the arrival of people from shanty towns.  In response to criticism from local residents, Sáenz de Oíza himself suggested that the problem was not the building itself, but rather the existing architecture of the city. Nevertheless, this striking building with its staggered profile, known to all Madrid residents as ‘El Ruedo’ (The Bullring), has become a symbol of identity for its inhabitants and, in many cases, a beacon of pride.