R E S T O R I N G N O R T H S A L T I V K A
L O C A T I O N : Kharkiv, Ukraine
T Y P E : residential
S I Z E : 11 000 m2
Y E A R : 2023
S T A T U S : competition
A R C H I T E C T : Anna Viken
E N G I N E E R : Dmytro Makahon
On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. The aggressor country regularly commits war crimes by attacking residential, public, and infrastructure facilities in front-line and rear-line cities and towns with cruise and ballistic missiles, barrage ammunition, aerial bombs, and artillery. This causes numerous victims among the civilian population and colossal destruction of individual buildings, and in some places - entire neighborhoods and cities. On the territory of Ukraine, more than 100,000 buildings have already been damaged or destroyed, of which more than 10,000 are multi-apartment buildings.
After the end of the war, and in the de-occupied territories - already now, there will be an urgent need to provide housing for people whose homes were destroyed by Russia. Public and infrastructure facilities will also require reconstruction. Therefore, in addition to purely technical issues, the issue of financing is important, because Ukraine has already suffered losses of hundreds of billions of dollars. That is why in the process of design, subsequent construction of new housing, or restoration of damaged one, it is necessary to follow a systematic approach that requires economically feasible architectural and technical solutions. Among these, if not of primary importance, the painstaking study of damaged buildings and the decision regarding their further restoration or demolition.
Residential buildings of the mass series of buildings built in the 60s and 70s make up a significant part of the housing stock of Ukraine. Objectively, the buildings do not meet modern thermal protection requirements, their engineering networks need repair, and the quality characteristics of planning solutions do not correspond to the modern way of life. However, despite the widespread opinion that panel houses have exhausted their operational resource, numerical surveys have shown that the main load-bearing structures of most of them are in satisfactory condition and, with proper repair, can be operated for another 40-50 years.
Northern Saltivka is mostly built up with serial panel buildings. Among them, II-57 is one of the typical series of residential buildings built from 1963 to 1970. The houses of this series are easily recognizable thanks to their characteristic "triangular" balconies. The houses of this series used external three-layer panels, a radiator-less heating system ("warm windowsills"), as well as new panels' joints. The advantages of these buildings include a small number of load-bearing walls, thanks to which various options for redevelopment are possible. Disadvantages include the lack of freight elevators, poor ventilation and soundproofing of inter-apartment walls, small area of kitchen areas, lack of inclusiveness.
The project aims to demonstrate a number of possible principles of restoration with Speedstac modules and insulated Kingspan metal panels of housing damaged by shelling on the example of a specific building (Building B) in the Northern Saltivka district, Kharkiv. This project also raises such a sensitive issue in Ukraine as the intention to demolish panel buildings with the subsequent construction of high-rise residential complexes in their place.
War is not only the destruction of cities, but also the economy. The events in Ukraine had a significant impact on inflation inside and outside the country. Therefore, architecture must take into account and respond accordingly also to the realities of the economy.
Thus, the demolition of damaged buildings and the construction of modern buildings in their place, although it is at first glance a more attractive solution, is significantly more expensive than repairing and restoration. In addition, this approach does not correspond to the principles of sustainable development, because the demolition and subsequent disposal of damaged buildings entail greater costs and an additional burden on the environment. Therefore, the project aimed at the restoration of damaged buildings with the improvement of their quality.
Design solutions meet modern requirements for energy efficiency, which allows further reduction of the costs of maintaining the house, as well as reducing energy consumption.
Thus, it is proposed to abandon the installation of air conditioners in favor of more sustainable climate solutions, such as additional insulation of the facade, which will reduce heat loss in winter and overheating in summer, replacement of window units with modern energy-efficient PVC double-glazed windows, installation of sun protection devices - roller shutters from the outside on the windows, installation of recuperators, which will ensure energy-efficient air exchange. In addition, the project provides for the replacement of house connections: electricity, water supply and sewerage, upgrading the heating system with the installation of meters and heat regulators in each apartment.
By default, concrete structures of panel houses have sufficient strength, so if they have not suffered destruction, it is economically expedient to use them during reconstruction, including, as load-bearing structures for Speedstac modules in case of partial demolition of the upper floors. In view of the economic expediency, as well as the reduction of the load - which must be done in order for the reconstruction to meet modern standards for ensuring stability and reliability - the upper technical floor must be demolished. The new balconies are installed on metal columns and attached to the panels through metal embedded parts with a cutting-off of the thermal bridge.
The height of the building remains unchanged, because when adding floors, it is necessary to change the type of staircase to a special one, in accordance with state building regulations.
The planning scheme of the section does not fundamentally change due to the requirements for insolation, as well as for reasons of maintaining the number of apartments and their roominess.
The new part of the building will have large floor-to-ceiling windows, and the dark narrow loggias will be changed to large balconies.
There are two themes on the facade: the existing part of the building, which is additionally insulated and decorated with plaster, and the new one, made of Kingspan panels. The architecture of the facade adheres to the principle of honest design, when materials do not pretend to be more aesthetic or expensive. They look as they are, such as metal decoration of facade panels, or inexpensive mosaic plaster.
The original pattern of the balcony parapets of the existing section will be preserved as a distinctive architectural element of the II-57 series.
In the existing entrances, cosmetic repair will be carried out in the aesthetics of the 70s, in accordance with the period of construction of the building. Corridors and vertical communications of the new section, which is a monolithic core of rigidity, will be concrete, without decoration. Blank entrance doors will be replaced with glass ones, in order to provide lighting and a sense of security.
Existing non-inclusive entrances are equipped with ramps and lifts. Entry to the new section is inclusive.
The nature and scale of destruction of buildings depends on the type of ammunition, their power, nature, number and place of impact, material and condition of the building itself, occurrence or absence of fire. When a projectile hits the upper floors, there is usually partial damage to the building, but in the case of hitting the lower part, the so-called "folding" of the panels is observed and, as a result, an avalanche-like destruction of the section.
Kharkiv was shelled mostly with artillery shells, the impact of which usually caused damage to one part of the section of the panel house, but in most cases - caused a fire. Due to constant shelling, it was not always possible to extinguish them in time, as a result of which most of the apartments in the section burned down. Therefore, where there were fires, a thorough analysis of the condition of the load-bearing structures is needed to assess their load-bearing capacity.
Three main approaches have been developed for the housing restoration project, taking into account the nature of the destruction of the structures.
The first - in the absence of significant damage, and the stability and reliability of the building is ensured, which is confirmed by a conclusion on the condition of the building. It is recommended, in view of the economic feasibility, to use the existing structures, if necessary, to repair them with solutions and metal clips.
The second - in the case of significant destruction of the upper floors and the inability to restore them. Damaged floors must be dismantled and replaced with Speedstac blocks, which allows quickly restore the building. The preserved lower floors are recommended to be left and, if necessary, repaired, as well as insulated.
The third – in case of complete destruction and impossibility of using most of the load-bearing structures, it is recommended to completely demolish the section and build a new one from Speedstac modules in its place.
T Y P E 1
Section that was damaged insignificantly. The damaged upper technical floor is to be demolished, with subsequent adjustment of a modern flat roof. Destroyed load-bearing panels need to be replaced with a metal frame, followed by filling with block materials such as brick or concrete block. House connections are also subject to replacement.
The external walls will be additionally insulated and plastered. The windows will be replaced with energy-efficient PVC double-glazed windows. On all facades, except for the northern one, sun protection devices - external blinds - will be installed. Illegally glazed balconies will be demolished.
The original pattern of concrete parapet will be preserved as a characteristic architectural element of the II-57 series.
The existing non-inclusive entrance to the section will be equipped with a ramp outside, and a lift inside.
T Y P E 2
A section in which the lower floors have been preserved, but most of the upper floors need to be demolished. The demolished floors will be replaced by Speedstac modules with a height of 3000 mm - slightly higher than the height of the existing floor. In order to improve the quality of the apartments, large balconies are added to the section. Balconies are supported on metal columns to reduce the load on existing structures.
The outer walls of the part built with Speedstac modules are made of 200 mm thick insulated Kingspan QuadCore metal panels in a metallic color. The panels will be without further decoration in order to reduce the weight and cost of the facade structure. The preserved part of the building will be additionally insulated and plastered.
All windows will be replaced with energy-efficient PVC double-glazed windows. On the facades, except for the northern one, sun protection devices - external blinds - will be installed on the windows. House connections are also subject to replacement.
The layouts of the apartments in the existing part are morally outdated. For example, a small isolated kitchen from a purely technological room has now turned into the heart of the apartment, and the bathrooms are too small. Therefore, it is suggested to add the kitchen to the living room, turning the two rooms into a large communal space. It is suggested to replace gas stoves with electric ones, otherwise, it will be necessary to install sliding doors between the kitchen and the living room. The bathroom is increased due to the adding of two existing ones and part of the corridor. The existing non-inclusive entrance to the section will be equipped with a ramp outside, and a lift inside.
The layout of the apartments in the part made of the Speedstac modules differs slightly from the existing ones due to the structural features of the concrete modules, but they meet all the requirements of the State Building Regulations of Ukraine, such as, for example, the ban on placing bathrooms above rooms and kitchens.
T Y P E 3
Newly built from Speedstac modules section in the dimensions of the demolished one.
The external walls are made of 200 mm thick insulated Kingspan QuadCore metal panels in a metallic color. Windows are floor-to-ceiling PVC double- glazed windows. On all facades, except for the northern one, sun protection devices - external blinds - will be installed on the windows.
The basement floor of the new section is a bomb shelter with capacity of up to 200 people. The bomb shelter has 138 beds and a number of benches, two bathrooms with showers, a warehouse with provisions and medicines. The bomb shelter has two evacuation exits, one of which is through a special tunnel with a well, which is placed at a distance of 1/2 the height of the building in case of its destruction.
