Hotel Centro
TEAM: Luke Andritsos – Andritsos Architect International
Plug & Play on Axis ‘Z’
In terms of hotel typology, three major innovations are explored in this project: architectural,
environmental & phenomenological. The challenge was this: how to stack 52 units on a 375 sm footprint 6 storeys high in a sensitive manner in terms of the guest experience & responsiveness to the urban fabric?
BENDING AXIS ‘Z’
As a tectonic exercise, the Hotel Centro builds on the strategy of stacked shipping containers by bending space in the ‘Z’ direction.
Common spaces are not shrink-wrapped & air conditioned but are open to the agreeable climate of Mexico. Here the concept of open air corridors is taken a step further by sloping them: the continuous, accessible ramp dynamically weaves in an extra half-level of suites. One can skateboard all the way down or bicycle all the way up this breezeway full of plants, birds & guests.
The visitor’s experience is enhanced: instead of confronting another’s door when a guest disembarks upon the city, each unit opens semi-privately at its own unique elevation in the sky directly onto the ramp. The efficiency of a double-loaded corridor (rooms both sides) is merged with the benefits of a single-loaded one (increased privacy, less hallway traffic.)
PREFAB
The units themselves are prefabricated: cost & quality control is greater on the factory floor. Sectionally identical, they act as hollow structural tubes & cantilever over the street. Only their lengths change to accommodate type, whether a one bedroom, two bedroom or deluxe suite. Shipped as cargo to the site, they’re hoisted up on the braced steel frame where they are plugged into a matrix of mechanical,
electrical & plumbing systems. The unit mix can be easily reconfigured for type, level & quantity: up to 14 more may be added within its current framing.
URBAN EXPERIENCE
The Hotel Centro enhances the pedestrian experience by completing the arcade of the street that frames El Centro square. Street-level porosity invites passerby to the lobby bar, restaurant & retail spaces. The planted living wall graces the square with a vertical garden while framing the rooftop infinity pool. Rooms jut to & fro overhead forming a virtual gateway to the square while providing a bold,
architectural place-maker for Guadalajara.
STATISTICS
Site Area: 375 sm
Site Location: Guadalajara, Mexico
GFA: 3294 sm
Height: 28 m, 6.5 Storeys + Basement
UNIT MIX
52 Keys:
20 Single Bedrooms: 20 sm
24 Double Bedrooms: 30 sm
8 Deluxe Suites: 35 sm