2016 MCHAP
The Click Clack Hotel
PLAN:B Architects
Bogota, Colombia
January 2014
PRIMARY AUTHOR
Felipe Mesa Federico Mesa
CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR
CNI Ingenieros (Nicolás Parra) (Structural design) Taller Estandar (Juan David Diez) (Graphic design) Perceptual studio (Furniture design) Acecuma Constructures LTDA (Construction)
CLIENT
Monkey business group S.A.S (Juan Felipe Cruz) Monkey business group S.A.S (Tomás Beltran)
PHOTOGRAPHER
Andrés Valbuena
OBJECTIVE
The building arises from stacking similar room modules in height always along a central corridor and with the possibility of three types of visual connections with the city: in the first, transparent windows from floor to ceiling allow a direct contact with the far urban landscape which can be controlled by means of mobile shutters. In the second, windows with parapet and fixed metal blinds allow a filtered and intimate connection with the city. And in the third, cantilevered windows over the main façade get closer to the city’s busy life. From the outside the buildings lets you see its uses in various intimate, night and social sides. In some cases, when the corridor reaches the main façade the space is conceived as art galleries to exhibit changing pieces to the city or meeting places for the guests. Faced with the homogeneity of the rooms and corridors, the common spaces offer wider diversity: lobby and restaurant with double height, multipurpose hall with independent access from the street and illuminated through lateral light, open rooftop bar. The hotel is articulated in a sober way to the constant and uniform urban scene.
CONTEXT
This project takes advantage of the strict urban regulations imposed on the neighborhood of Chapinero in the city of Bogota to benefit various functional, formal and ambient aspects of the new hotel. The 6 meter side setbacks allow for opening big windows in a correct bioclimatic position. The 1.5 meter projection permitted on the main façade enable windows or art galleries projected over the bustling life of the city and to observe the mountains and the forests of the east. The possibility of increasing an extra floor with rooms as long as vehicular access is on the same level as pedestrian access, avoids building ramps and forces to take the common areas of the hotel to the basement which is illuminated with side patios and green walls. This situation defines as well a narrow lobby but with double height and protected from the noise of the street. The regulatory possibility of having a light construction on the terrace and around the lift admitted the construction of a wooden bar which allows a 360 degree viewpoint of the city. The regulation which doesn’t oblige you to setback 6 meters on the first built floor enabled to have some bedrooms with green terraces.
PERFORMANCE
The building has triggered new urban, cultural and festive activities by means of its spaces: the multipurpose hall is a flexible space with direct access from the street which has allowed to host parties, independent film festivals and various types of social meetings. The galleries in the façade have exhibited the work of local artists, the bar on the terrace has invigorated night activities in the city and the restaurant is linked to the gastronomic network of the city. All these services can be enjoyed by the guests or inhabitants of the city, and for this reason the building has become an important meeting point. Simultaneously, intimacy and independence can be enjoyed in the rooms, expanding the very recent tourist activity of Colombia. From a bioclimatic point of view the building has natural illumination in all its spaces, cross ventilation in its common areas and it only has air conditioning in 20% of the rooms for the guests who require it, because its interior spaces are actually kept in constant comfort zone throughout the day making the most of not having seasons and the mild climate Bogota. The buildings’ orientation and its double skin composed of glass and metal, have allowed an efficient temperature control. The noise from the exterior has been controlled by means of aluminum window frames and double glazing.
