Apartments Block

Constructed at the highly commercial area of Vrilissia (Attika – Northern Suburbs), this modern and minimalistic residential block was fully developed by Metrax from conception to completion. It consists of six apartments and a maisonette in total and the main goal of the project was to achieve maximum return on investment, within the context of the area potential, while overcoming severe design challenges given a problematic shape of the land field (long and narrow 3:1).

Following a lengthy due diligence process in order to achieve full legal compliance along with serious building code complications attached to the specific land field, our team had to solve a major design challenge that would make or break the sales of the housing units of the block. The limitations imposed by the oddly shaped (elongated) land field was a major design challenge given that all other residential units based on similarly shaped fields in the area, followed a more traditional design approach by splitting the block residencies into front-back configurations in order to avoid really long and narrow shaped floor layouts. However, such a solution was risky given the fact that any residencies placed at the back of the field would be almost impossible to sell since their surrounding view was far from ideal both on its own and compared to the front.

The first “remedy” to the design challenges faced was the decision to not split the apartment units into front and back positions but opt for a side by side placement that allowed for equal access to the front for all units while also creating a ground floor unit with the privilege of exclusive garden access around its perimeter. This design approach meant that we had to create apartments with a maximum width of only 4.5 meters and resort to utilizing other methods in order to reduce the sense of narrowness for the residents. For example we used modern cast-iron high performing fireplaces that were place flat to the sidewalls with their furnace chambers protruding outside. To maximize thermal performance we used special insulation and air channels inside out that increased the cost moderately but space savings were critical so the choice was well justified. Additionally, by implementing several design “tricks” at our disposal such us side pseudo-balconies for plant placement the end result was highly pleasing proved by the fact that all properties were sold “on target”.

Technically, the procedures followed during construction far exceeded market requirements during all stages from planning to construction delivery. From structural engineering, foundation embankments, continuous lab testing of concrete strength and high performing aerated insulation of the roof, to strict quality standards for material choice through careful vendor selection and assessment, our team went the extra mile to ensure that future residents would receive unprecedented value for money through their purchase far exceeding comparable solutions in this category of the market.