95PLA Refurbishment / Vallribera Arquitectes

Another row house, another four-person family, another set of parents, and another two children. Another challenge to take on. The design deals with an issue that is characteristic of this kind of project: is it better to refurbish the original building or tear it down and build something new? In this case, the answer is unclear. On the one hand, the structure at the back of the house has been damaged due to a lack of maintenance on the roof. The stairwell also needs to be torn out to make room for a parking area (one of the client’s non-negotiable requests). That requires a rather large surface area of new construction. On the other hand, the original building has the charm of a 100-year-old house, and the rest of the structure and building enve-lope can be kept and refurbished.