Project material
- Category
- Multifamily Housing
- Typology
- Non-subsidized housing
- Year
- 2020
- Area
- 29307.04 m2
- Program
- 262 homes
- Location
- Cartagena, Bolívar
- Neighborhood
- Serena del Mar
Inside Serena del Mar
Trevi rises in Serena del Mar, a new district of Cartagena fifteen minutes from the historic center, on a site bordering Tierra Baja and the Portanova and Portelo projects. The brief called for a gated residential development under horizontal property, and the project understands it as a piece of the coast-mangrove ecosystem rather than as a compound closed in on itself.
The development is arranged in seven blocks of six floors —five levels and a loft— belonging to two families: four towers with an oval plan and three linear towers. The curve of the ovals softens the meeting with public space and leaves a visually permeable edge: the pedestrian's gaze crosses the development instead of stopping at a wall.
The amenities are condensed at the center of the site, where the pool area occupies 680.66 m² across recreational water for adults, children and water games; in the linear tower of the second phase, the gym, the games room and the social lounge take the top floor. Tree-lined paths link these pieces to the surrounding vegetation. Construction advances in two phases, of 117 and 145 apartments, until reaching 262 homes.
On the roofs, the solar panels and planted terraces make use of the constant Caribbean sun, and the development connects to a district thermal system with dedicated technical rooms. In the loft, each apartment extends into a private terrace where the timber pergola filters the harsh midday light.
A fluid, permeable edge
The initial sketch did not draw a wall but a flow: that of the coast-mangrove ecosystem surrounding the site. From it came the oval plan, a curve that replaces the hard corner of the conventional block and lets public space carry on between the towers. The team alternated those ovals with linear blocks to tune density and parking, condensed the amenities at the center and laid out paths that tie the development to the existing vegetation. Trevi's design report proved so solid that it later served as the basis for other studio projects in Serena del Mar.
The site. 1.46 ha in Serena del Mar, Cartagena. Before drawing towers, the rules: 8 m to the boulevard and 10 m at the back. Fewer towers. 262 homes in just seven buildings: four ovals on the boulevard and a bar at the back. 62% of the ground stays open. The oval. The curve is not ornament: a single core serves 43 flats and leaves about 9 m² of circulation per home. The bar. No basement: parking is tucked inside the bar, and private terraces of up to 66 m² open on top of it. Climate. Caribbean heat and humidity: balconies that shade and inner courtyards that draw hot air out through the roof. The core. Amenities gather at the center and planting spreads to the edges: the scheme opens up to the landscape.
