Bruce French
COOKING POT
From the research I have obtained within Athens it is apparent that there is a common theme
of street cooking amongst locals, refugees and NGO’s. Moreover, there is also an estimated
300,000 unused buildings within Athens that came to fruition through the financial crisis. The
Greek government also does not provide any social housing within the area for those who
are in need. The brief within this project will look at a phased strategy which will look at firstly
providing a civic space in the form of a communal kitchen for NGOs and charities to
encourage integration through the means of food. Later the project will integrate social
housing into the scheme, with an accompanying tower, where residents will be able to
socialise, stay and also work within the kitchen in return. The early phases of the project look
to incorporate a bottom up approach where the refugee and local community can be
involved within the construction. Furthermore, the scheme looks at agreements with
landlords to provide temporary accommodation that can be removed if needed; that
occupies the abandoned Polykatikia. The scheme spans over a negotiated 30-year time
period with the building’s owners. During this time period a proposal for a tower has been
drafted that improves circulation around the site and adds to the civic spaces within the
scheme. Following the narrative, the tower could be accepted or not by the owners of the
site. To improve negotiation, the tower has been designed using cost effective and
vernacular materials that allow the space to be altered in the future if the site’s occupation
was to change after the initial 30-year agreement has ended.
