A new way of understanding tourism: A hotel for social integration.
Cities like Barcelona must reformulate tourism.
Tourism must stop being a polluting industry to become a factor of social integration.
The ANTIGA CASA BUENAVISTA Hotel is a family project that integrates tourism to the local inhabitants and provides a sense of BELONGING to the visitor. It does it in two ways:
-Reinterpretation of Traditional Construction.
-Introduction of Circular Economy for the Neighborhood.
Local
Spain
Barcelona Old city
Mainly urban
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
No
No
Yes
2022-07-01
As a representative of an organisation
Name of the organisation(s): Tdb Arquitectura Type of organisation: For-profit company First name of representative: Juan Last name of representative: Trias de Bes Gender: Male Nationality: Spain If relevant, please select your other nationality: Spain Function: Architecture Studio Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: C/ d'Arimon, 64, Town: Barcelona Postal code: 08022 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34 667 45 27 63 E-mail:press@tdb-arquitectura.com Website:https://tdb-arquitectura.com/
The ANTIGA CASA BUENAVISTA HOTEL is the result of a vital project of the Molleví family throughout almost 10 years of work, which makes it specific and exemplary of its kind.
1- THE FAMILY ROOTS OF THE BUILDING:
The “ANTIGA CASA BUENAVISTA HOTEL” takes up the name of the original restaurant that was run in this same building by the ancestors of its current owners.
The building that we find today takes up the family tradition through the renewed vision of its descendants. A family that has inherited the legacy of hospitality and a vocation for personalized service.
2- ARCHITECTURAL TYPOLOGY:
The geometry of the building has been designed in such a way that the current hotel rooms could be transformed into homes. In this way the residential character of the building will be maintained over time.
So, integration in the neighborhood is ensured if the socioeconomic conditions change over time.
3- BARCELONA CONTEXT:
From the beginning of the project for the new hotel, a clear awareness of establishing a close Barcelona bond was adopted.
Construction of the Building: The construction elements and furniture belong to Barcelona's industry and design, stimulating the recovery of traditional craft trades, which are in danger of disappearing.
Operations and Operation of the Hotel: Recovery of the traditional operations of family hotel management in large cities. The hotel collaborates with neighborhood institutions by hiring staff from neighborhood residents.
The hotel hires external services (laundry) and purchases food products from stores near the building.
Information Point: The hotel provides information on commercial establishments in the neighborhood and on visits to places far from the city center. In this way, it is a catalyst for the circular economy of places that are not found in the typical tourist circuits.
Tradition
Family
Belonging
Circular Economy
Stake
The building has been designed considering the following aspects of sustainability:
1-Transformation and Adaptation of the Building to the needs of the future: At present the building is a hotel, but with the evolution of time the social and economic reality may change. It has been considered that the timeless will always be the residential character. For this reason, the rooms have been designed in such a way that by joining two of them, a minimum residential unit would be obtained. This will imply a minimum energy cost in the future in the event of the need to transform the hotel into a residential building.
2-Maintenance of the building: Quality natural materials have been used, such as ceramics, natural wood, painted steel and marble. Over time, these materials will acquire more quality. Regarding cleaning maintenance, the entire building is accessible to personnel who are not necessarily specialized. For example, all windows can be cleaned from inside the building.
3-Minimization of waste generation: The hotel is a small building located in the center of the city. For this reason, there is very little space for waste storage. The operation of the hotel has been designed in such a way that the consumption of bathroom utensils and drinks does not generate waste from plastic containers.
4-Air Conditioning Energy Consumption: The building has solar energy capture and solar control of Mediterranean blinds in all rooms. The provision of an interior patio allows natural cross ventilation of all the common areas of the hotel.
5-Reduction of CO2 emissions: The operation of the hotel relies on the hiring of neighborhood residents and services from nearby establishments. In this way, wheeled mobility, and the presence of service vehicles in the city center are reduced.
The design of the hotel is oriented so that the visitor perceives an experience of belonging. With this objective, the design elements are based on the following aspects:
1-Recovery of elements of the constructive tradition:
These are spaces rooted in the traditional architecture of Barcelona:
The modernist stained-glass windows, the "festejador" next to the windows, the wrought iron railings, the canopy of the beds, the coffered ceilings, the Alicante shutters on the balconies that contain flowers, the hydraulic pavements, etc., are some of the recovered elements of the Barcelona and Catalan tradition.
At the same time, the furniture is chosen from the tradition of the Barcelona Modern Movement. The visitor will find designs such as the Coderch lamp, the “TMC” by Miguel Milà, or the “Gaulino” table by Oscar Tusquets. Among the chairs coexist the classic designs of Torres Clavé, the "Barcelona" by Mies Van der Rohe, or the "Catalana" by Rodríguez Arias, to mention a few examples.
2-Domestic dimension of spaces:
One of the objectives of the hotel owners is to give visitors the feeling of being in a traditional house in Barcelona. For this reason, the spaces throughout the building provide a domestic dimension, more typical of a home than of a tourist building. The common areas are made up of small groups of furniture, so that the visitor perceives a room in a residential building.
Barcelona has very demanding accessibility regulations.
The building complies with all the inclusion and access regulations:
-All common areas are accessible to people with reduced mobility.
-All rooms are adapted for people with reduced mobility.
-In case a visitor requires it, the basement floor -2 is a car park that is accessed by elevator.
-There is no step or unevenness in each of the levels of the building, so all corners are accessible.
-The pool on the covered terrace has a water immersion system for visitors with reduced capacity.
-The corridors of the rooms have natural light, which makes it easier for elderly visitors to orient themselves.
The hotel owners are committed to the social benefits of the neighborhood. With this objective, the following dynamics are pointed out:
1-Operation and Functioning of the Hotel:
At the beginning of the project, the hotel owners contacted some local corporations. The objective was to have the participation of neighborhood residents in the operation of the hotel.
The hotel collaborates with neighborhood institutions by hiring neighborhood staff.
For example, the hotel hires external services (laundry) and purchases food products from stores near the building.
Moreover, the kitchen has a young local chef.
2- Neighborhood Business Information Point: The hotel provides information on neighborhood business establishments and visits to places far from the city center. In this way, it is a catalyst for the circular economy of places that are not found in the typical tourist circuits.
The agents that have participated in the project are private individuals on a local scale. Public agents have participated through their powers in the granting of licenses.
-Private Agents: Owners of the Hotel, Corporations and Social Institutions of the neighborhood, neighbors. Construction: Architects, Engineers, Interior Designers, Project Management, acoustic consultants, furniture and kitchen consultants. Construction company, local industry, etc.
-Public Agents: Protection of the Architectural Heritage of the Barcelona City Council, Technical Services of the Ciutat Vella District, Department of Tourism of the Generalitat de Catalunya, Metropolitan Transport of Barcelona, Agency of the Energy of Catalonia.
Two types of fields of knowledge are distinguished:
1- Those Corresponding to the Design and Construction of the Building:
The design of the hotel is based on the recovery of what is called a "Barcelona Architectural Imaginary". The construction of “imaginaries” belongs to the field of knowledge of “phenomenology”. In the case of Architecture, “phenomenology” starts from the imaginary rooted in the memory of the inhabitants of Barcelona.
The spaces described in section 7 correspond to this group.
(Modernist stained-glass windows, ceramic vaults, cast iron pillars, wrought iron railings, bed canopies, coffered ceilings, Alicante shutters on balconies containing flowers, marble pavements, etc.)
Phenomenology in architecture deals with the poetics of space, which is made up of a certain repertoire. Many of the elements incorporated in the hotel project belong to this group.
Added Value: The recovery of traditional craft trades, which are in danger of disappearing, is stimulated.
2-Those Corresponding to Hotel Operations:
The management of tourism-oriented hotels constitutes a field of knowledge. In this case, the model of a large hotel brand has been replaced by a family-run model. This type of hotel is at risk of disappearing in the center of large capitals. Barcelona is a very clear case of this phenomenon.
The experience of several generations of the family that owns the hotel is passed down from father to son.
Added Value: Recovery and stimulation of traditional family hotel management operations in large cities.
1-Improvement of the tourism industry: The success of this model can encourage other citizens to promote tourist establishments based on family tradition.
2-Improving Socio-Liberal Democracy: The construction of the ANTIGA CASA BUENAVISTA HOTEL has been carried out under very adverse conditions and under the mistrust of the Barcelona City Council.
The best progress that could be expected is the recognition by the Barcelona City Council of the success of the hotel model that has been carried out. And, consequently, to demonstrate the importance of PROVIDING FREEDOM AND CONFIDENCE TO CITIZENS TO COLLABORATE IN THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE CITY, in opposition to interventionist policies with a populist ideological bias.
IT IS A RELEVANT ISSUE THAT FINDS ITS ROOTS IN EUROPEAN SOCIOLIBERAL DEMOCRACY.
The innovation is based on the proposal of a new type of space based on the creation of an architectural imagery resulting from the overlap: Tradition + Technology.
The building is the result of an "ex novo" construction on a plot where the facades have been maintained. The difficulty of a project of this nature is to separate the interior of the building from its exterior.
The ANTIGA CASA BUENAVISTA hotel offers a continuous space from the outside of the building to its interior. The architectural character of the hotel dissolves the temporary space between the exterior and the interior.
For example, the construction of the ceramic vaults has been carried out with high-tech systems in local artisan workshops.
The hotel design methodology follows the following process:
1-Generation of a set of initial reflections and aspirations of the hotel model by the owners of the future building.
2-Understanding of the aspirations and objectives of the owners, by the team of architects.
3-Development of the Project and repeated review by the owners.
4-Creation of a multidisciplinary team to support Architects (Engineers, Interior Designers, Project Management, consultants, etc.)
5-Contracting a Construction Company, in collaboration with the local industry.
6-Building construction.
Two types of knowledge transfer are distinguished:
1- Those Corresponding to the Design and Construction of the Building:
Technology transfer of contemporary technological systems carried out by the local industry.
For example, the construction of the ceramic vaults, which have been carried out with high-tech systems in local artisan workshops.
2-Those Corresponding to Hotel Operations:
The family hotel management model of this establishment stimulates the transfer of knowledge from parents to children to future generations.
GLOBAL CHALLENGES:
1-The problem of the tourism industry: Currently mass tourism in cities like Barcelona produces environmental and social pollution. This tourism industry is largely fueled by accommodation models unrelated to social and urban integration.
Contamination is produced by crowding and by a visitor profile WITHOUT THE PERCEPTION OF BELONGING TO THE CITY. On the other hand, the economic opportunity that this industry fosters produces many low-quality businesses that are outside the local circular economy. Therefore, small local businesses are in danger of extinction due to the deterioration of the urban context.
2-Barcelona City Council's democratic deficit: To combat the problems of the tourism industry, the proposal of the Barcelona City Council government team in recent years has been to prohibit the creation of new hotels. This attitude has not led to an improvement in the concept of tourism because it hinders the regeneration of the sector by the residents and inhabitants of the city.
LOCAL SOLUTIONS:
1-Improvement of the tourism industry: The ANTIGA CASA BUENAVISTA hotel offers two aspects that are at the base of the solution to tourist pollution: (1) Local circular economy and (2) SENSE OF BELONGING to the visitor. In establishments like this, the visitor is offered a stay based on the experience of the domestic habitat and local consumption. The extension of this model would favor the improvement of the visitor integration and, therefore, the reduction of pollution from the tourism industry.
2-Democratic improvement of Barcelona City Council: The management model of this hotel shows that city policies should not be interventionist and prohibitive as a rule. It must give way to citizen initiative and collaboration for the improvement of the city.
