Dutch architect MVRDV is working alongside Spanish firm GRAS Reynés Arquitectos on a renovation of the El Terreno neighbourhood in Palma, Mallorca.
Four buildings will be refurbished and a further three built to reinvigorate the district, which is close to the Plaza Gomila in the island’s harbour.
Project Gomila is being developed by the Fluxà Family, which owns the Mallorca-based Camper shoe brand. The first phase will include the Gomila Centre, a renovation of a 1979 building designed by Pere Nicolau. There will also be Fabri-Casas, a set of blue row houses with a saw-tooth roof and Las Casitas, a series of red townhouses.
There will also be a rammed earth apartment building and a renovation of the green La Plaza building.
A second phase will involve work on two older buildings: the yellow Casa Virginia and a small site next to the Gomila Centre.
The revamped centre will be built according to PassivHaus principles, with solar panels and locally sourced materials.
Jacob van Rijs, MVRDV founding partner, said: “By mixing new buildings and reused structures, we rejuvenate the neighbourhood while maintaining the connection to its illustrious past.
“Renovating the Gomila Centre is not only ecologically sustainable, reusing the building in line with principles of circularity, but also offers a reminder of the history of the area.”
Winy Maas, MVRDV founding partner, said: “We wanted to create a social, human neighbourhood in which all people would feel at home.
“The colour palette matches sunny Mallorca, from terracotta and earth tones to bright blue and red. Because the roofs are cut in different ways – one stepped, one sloped, one with jagged gables – a diverse, recognisable district is created.”
