City Plaza+Rävala 4 Office Complex
Location: Tallinn, Estonia
Year: 2006
Status: Completed
Size: 31,000 m² (total), incl. office, retail, gym, multiple restaurants, parking, covered public space
Program: Office
Project team: Alver Architects (lead designer and executive architect); Tiit Trummal (co-author); Eesti Projekt / Tiit Masso & Pike IB (construction engineer)
Description:
The complex is comprised of two separate office buildings for two different clients. However, as the buildings are situated right next to each other and were designed and constructed simultaneously, they are commonly perceived as a single ensamble. The complex with a total gross area of 31,000m2 includes a gym, multiple restaurants, parking and a covered public space for social events. The parti is defined by two office slabs: one of them vertical, the other – horizontal. The horizontal one cantilevers over the central street of the Tallinn’s business district – Rävala Avenue, to make for the most unusual appearance at the otherwise conventional streetscape. The space under the cantilever faces south and provides a perfect meeting place for people to engage in various urban activities.
The program for both buildings is very diverse, with all the connections tailored to specific site conditions. The vertical office slab is elevated from the ground to provide for panoramic views of Tallinn’s Old Town and the harbor district. The floors between the public ground floor and the elevated slab accommodate 4 floors of parking and a restaurant. On the other side, the cubic dark volume underneath the horizontal office slab is shared by a flagship store, a fitness-club with a swimming pool, and the offices of the EEstonian branch of the European Council – the building is therefore named the European Union House. The cantilevering part of the building is clad with double-skin façade which is covered with thematic typographic pattern.