Conversion of the old market building into the municipal library of Ponteareas
Location: Pontevedra (Spain)
Year: 2024
Type: public competition. 2nd Prize
Client: Ayuntamiento de Ponteareas
Area: 4.650 sqm
Team: Pablo Valero Escolano, David Úbeda Sales, Francisco Garrido Roca
Collaborators: Bianca Grilli
Resource: Teatro di Marcello - Giovanni Battista Piranesi
Our proposal for the new Municipal Library of Ponteareas is grounded in the urban values of the site. The project aims to open the cultural facility to the city, fostering strong interaction with its surrounding urban context.
The strategy involves revealing the old market building’s structure by removing unsignificant elements, allowing its most expressive features to stand out. On this foundation, new elements will be added to ensure comfort, energy efficiency, and spatial flexibility. Vertical circulation and spatial interventions will also be implemented to adapt the building to its new function and integrate the library seamlessly into its environment. These operations will create a series of intermediate spaces—urban salons—designed to host a wide variety of activities.
This approach extends to the roof, which is conceived not merely as a cover but as an active surface that can be “carpeted” to generate new recreational and social spaces for both the library and the city.