Bids for Tender
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A bid for tenders for the building at Skolas Street 17 We organised two bids for tender for architects to find the best solution for the building that is to be erected at Skolas Street 17. There is a great diversity of architectural styles in that street. There are modern and attractive Art Nouveau buildings, others that have a rational and reticent style, as well as Soviet-era buildings. The job for participants in the bid for tenders was a tough one – the residential building at Skolas 17 must have a new appearance, and a modern approach must be taken to the city’s spatial structure. Historical buildings must not be copied. Instead, the lot must be the place for a modern and functional building, paying particular attention to the scope of the city, the materials that are to be used, and the convenience of design for the structure. During the first bid for tenders in 2006, the jury rejected all of the bids. A second, international bid for tenders was won by the JKMM architectural firm of Finland. The jury declared its submission to be the most successful one in architectural and urban construction terms. The design fits in well in the urban environment of Art Nouveau architecture in Rīga, also offering new elements of architecture in Skolas Street. Members of the jury described the design as one with “very interesting and different architecture in which one senses elements of local traditions and those of other countries. Although the façade appears to be very independent, it fits in well in the appearance of Skolas Street. The culture of detail and the valuable proposal allow us to hope that this building will win the annual prize for architecture.” The JKMM design is also very successful in terms of the planning of individual flats. That is seen in the fact that people who have already reserved homes in the building at Skolas Street 17 have not indicated any desire for re-planning. |
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A bid for tenders for the lot at Skārņu Street 11 Motto: Architecture as an environmental design sculpture in the city’s historical environment. Also in 2006, we organised an international bid for tenders to find an architect who could present a high-quality vision for construction on the plot of land that is at Skārņu Street 11 in Rīga. The requirement was for a modern design which would supplement the historical buildings which are already there. There has always been intensive construction in the area around St Peter’s Church in Old Rīga. The earliest buildings in the area date back to the 12th century. Prior to World War II, Skārņu Street 11 was the location of a five-story apartment building with a butcher shop on the first floor. The square between St Peter’s and St John’s emerged only after World War II, during the course of which many buildings, including the one at Skārņu 11, were destroyed and razed. Applicants in the bid for tenders were asked to develop a design which would restore the historical structure, cover up the open firewall at Skārņu Street 9, copy the silhouette of the roof of the neighbouring building, and also take into account the Medieval structures on the opposite side of the street. The bid for tenders attracted well known Latvian and foreign architectural firms. The jury selected the proposal of SIA Arhitektu birojs Jaunromāns un Ābele, declaring that proposal to be the one which most successfully put a new building in an historical urban environment. The jury also praised the functional solution of the design. The first floor of the new building at Skārņu 11 will have public areas -- a shop or gallery. Offices will be established on the second floor, while the higher floors will have one luxury flat apiece – 130 m2 of floor space in each one. |