The new district of Tripoli city in Lebanon, has been subject to an increasing demand on residential and commercial spaces after 2006. The real-estate developers and landlords in the area raced to fulfil the market demand.Yet, this rapid real-estate development was irrational and arbitrary in many ways. In the last decade, the number of residential buildings increased dramatically, creating a massive concrete jungle mortifying any identity or aesthetic value to the city. As a result of this huge supply, demand started to decrease; yet, prices remained unchanged.. And investors were searching to revive their investments through the creation of attractive products.
This 6,000 square meter project, located on the southern entrance of Tripoli, facing a huge roundabout, had to become a landmark, a gate, and a facade for the city.The developer had already started the architectural studies with a locale architectural firm. Nevertheless, he was unsatisfied with the architectural designs, and was willing to reconsider it, until I proposed a new concept in design, very different from the local designs, convincing him that through innovation and aesthetic value, he could compete with other developers.And since the area is subjected to certain rules and regulations such as stone cladding, set back, and land exploitation; I re-arranged the spaces in a way that it could generate a nice innovative form away from typical residential building that surrounds it.
The main architectural elements that I worked on are:
- Terraces
- Vertical landscape
- Wide panoramic openings
- Identity of form
- Quality of dwell
Tripoli, Lebanon – 2012
Arch M.O. Kabbara 