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Architects: Yemail Arquitectura
- Area: 5016 ft²
- Year: 2024
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Manufacturers: Ladrillera Santafé
In the western part of Bogotá, between Calle 80 and the Juan Amarillo Wetland, lies one of the most interesting urban and architectural projects in the history of Colombia: the Ciudadela Colsubsidio. Created in 1983 as a response to Law 21 of 1982, which required social security organizations to provide housing for their members. Colsubsidio, the project manager, hired Germán Samper to tackle a 130-hectare plot located between two well-established neighborhoods (Santa Bárbara and Bolivia). The challenge was to connect these neighborhoods while creating a citadel that would consolidate various essential services for a population that, due to its geographical location, was distant from the center of Bogotá.
The challenge Samper faced was to develop a clear urban structure that would articulate the existing neighborhoods along the east-west axis and, along the north-south axis, connect the Juan Amarillo Wetland with Calle 80, the main road that would serve the entire neighborhood. From the initial design, it was evident that the architect was concerned with creating and developing a spatial experience for the residents, where the neighborhood itself would be the manager of spaces that directly integrate daily life with architecture, responsible for defining the spatial boundaries they aimed to create.
The intervention project includes the design of the Julio Mario Santo Domingo Cultural Center and Public Library, as well as the 6-hectare San José de Bavaria recreational park. With its completion, a new recreational and cultural hub was established for the Suba area and the city.
El Tintal Library is the result of reusing a former disused waste transfer plant and transforming the 5-hectare site into a park along Avenida Ciudad de Cali with 6th Street. The rescued building from ruin was a 25-meter-wide by 72-meter-long industrial warehouse with a total area of 3,600 m², distributed over two floors of considerable height. Built with a sturdy concrete structure and large spans, it was adaptable to new use, enhancing its robust and industrial appearance.
Considered a heritage of the modern movement in Colombia, the Colpatria Tower rises in the San Diego sector of the renowned International Center of Bogotá. With 50 floors and a height of 196 meters, it was the tallest building in the country for many years until the construction of the BD Bacatá in 2016, also in Bogotá. The implementation of innovative construction techniques and its location at the intersection of two major arterial roads of the capital - Carrera Séptima and Avenida El Dorado (Calle 26) - made it an architectural landmark of the city. Its sober and assertive design contributed an unprecedented pattern to the urban profile in the 1970s.