Our company has prepared a tool and performed analyzes of surface water runoff for the competition work carried out by the Pronobis Studio and MiastoPracownia consortium composed of: Dominika Wilczyńska, Barbara Nawrocka, Sylwia Widzisz-Pronobis, Grzegorz Pronobis, Anna Kurianowicz, Janek Nagel.
The work received a distinction from the Association of Polish Architects (SARP) in the competition for the development of an urban and architectural concept for the part of Centrum Mysłowice in the second stage of the competition.
#miastochłonne, concept for the city center of Mysłowice
Until recently, direct brain-computer communication was a topic known only from science fiction novels and movies. Along with the development of brain imaging technology, the apparatus enabling the recording of brain waves has become many times cheaper and miniaturized, and thus more accessible. We decided to check whether it is possible to prepare software that correctly recognizes the architect’s mental commands and interprets them as program functions.
What should a crisis-resistant city look like? How to build new downtowns in the era of climate change? How to develop a city based on the latest knowledge? We want to answer these questions by presenting an urban and architectural concept for a part of the center of Mysłowice. In the project, we create a compact development of a vibrant center, friendly to people traveling around the city thanks to the strength of their muscles. There are a number of solutions for pedestrians, cyclists, the elderly and those with disabilities. Greenery, thanks to additions, creates not only strolling routes, but also coherently connects subsequent recreational spaces. Greening is applied to the sequence of the most important city squares and the interiors of quarters, creating not only green public spaces, but also intimate and decorated semi-public and semi-private courtyards. Based on the analysis of the water flow, more semi-permeable retention reservoirs have been marked out – anti-flood systems included in the green recreational function [source: description of the authors of the competition work].
Rainwater management
The entire area has been analyzed in terms of the direction of rainwater runoff and according to this analysis, a number of small retention solutions have been introduced. The implemented target and temporary architectural solutions have been designed using ecological solutions, made of natural materials and taking into account recycling at the material level as well as a flexible function that can be transformed with little energy and capital expenditure.
After analyzing the water flow in the area of the study, we introduce a number of different solutions aimed at more efficient water management in the city, also in the context of safety against the negative effects of climate change, e.g. alternating heat waves and torrential rains. Using the existing differences in the terrain, green areas are designed in appropriate places (in the form of rain gardens, dry streams, pond) in order to retain rainwater. In addition, rainwater is also appropriately directed to the roofs of new facilities and collected for watering, for example, community gardens. An example of a technology that collects rainwater is the “inverted umbrellas” above the marketplace. A tight reservoir is also designed inside the new building quarter at the market square to collect water during a downpour, which will automatically evaporate later [source: description of the authors of the competition work].
Simulation of surface water runoff
Our task was to prepare the tool and simulate surface water runoff. We have developed a program that, using the relief and building model, is able to simulate the flow of water and define the areas of its collection. Thanks to the results of the analysis, it is possible to locate retention reservoirs in key areas, allowing for the design of rainwater management.
