In Ray Bradbury’s classic time travel short story “A Sound of Thunder” a metal path floats six inches above the earth to keep all of the visitors to the past from disturbing the environment and altering the future. For anyone who has read the story, you know how important the path is and how devastating the consequences of straying from it can be.
While it’s not as dramatic as Bradbury’s fictional path and the implications that surround it, a new residential development from Zaha Hadid Architects uses a network of suspended footpaths to keep residents from disturbing the ecosystem. These Bradburian footpaths will connect residents to the surrounding woodland preserve, coast and lagoon.
Alai, located in the Mayan Riviera in Mexico, was designed in response to its natural surroundings. The luxury residential development’s design integrates a new residential community in an area experiencing strong growth while also minimizing the effect of the new buildings on local ecosystems. The combined footprint of all residential buildings on the site is limited to 7% of the total area to enable existing vegetation to be retained and a majority of the site to be returned to its natural state.
Rendering courtesy of MIR.
A previous owner originally prepared the site for a complex that was never constructed. In an effort to repair the damage done to the ecosystems by this owner, a new onsite botanical nursery will foster the growth of the site’s biodiversity. This nursery will eventually become an attraction and education facility for the development.
In addition to the suspended footpaths, the residential buildings themselves will share an elevated platform with integrated perforations that allow natural light to flood the ground below and enable tropical vegetation to grow upwards through the platform. Amenities for sport, leisure, and wellness are located on the raised platform, which exists nine meters off the ground. This height ensures local wildlife can cross the entire site on the woodland floor without barriers.
Rendering courtesy of MIR.
Each apartment comes with large living areas and bedrooms and private balconies with unobstructed views of the surrounding landscape and Caribbean Sea. Each building was designed to echo the textures and surface complexity associated with the local Mayan masonry and architectural tradition and is supposed to reinterpret local Mayan heritage in a contemporary adaptation.
Rendering courtesy of MIR.
Rendering courtesy of MIR.
Related Stories
Building Team | Jul 7, 2022
Amenity-rich rental property in Chicago includes seven-story atrium with vertical landscaping
The recently opened 198-unit Optima Lakeview luxury rental apartment building in Chicago is bursting with amenities such as the region’s first year-round rooftop pool, contact-free in-home package delivery, housekeeping services, on-site room service, fitness programming, and a virtual personal assistant.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 6, 2022
The power of contextual housing development
Creating urban villages and vibrant communities starts with a better understanding of place, writes LPA's Matthew Porreca.
Green | Jun 22, 2022
The business case for passive house multifamily
A trio of Passive House experts talk about the true costs and benefits of passive house design and construction for multifamily projects.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 21, 2022
Two birds, one solution: Can we solve urban last-mile distribution and housing challenges at the same time?
When it comes to the development of both multifamily housing and last-mile distribution centers, particularly in metropolitan environments, each presents its own series of challenges and hurdles. One solution: single-use structures.
Sponsored | HVAC | Jun 14, 2022
Healing the urban fabric: The surprising impact of MagicPak HVAC
The Legends at Berry active adult housing complex in St. Paul, Minnesota helped transform a former industrial site into a thriving residential campus. MagicPak All-in-One® HVAC Systems provided the energy-efficient heating needed to handle extreme Minnesota winters while enabling architects to create an inviting home environment—and even qualify for additional funding incentives.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 9, 2022
Cityview's Adam Perry on multifamily housing innovation in the Western U.S.
Adam Perry, SVP of Development and Construction Management with developer Cityview, chats with Multifamily Design+Construction Editor Rob Cassidy about the latest design and construction innovations for multifamily housing in the West.
Hotel Facilities | May 31, 2022
Checking out: Tips for converting hotels to housing
Many building owners are considering repositioning their hotels into another property type, such as senior living communities and rental apartments. Here's advice for getting started.
Multifamily Housing | May 25, 2022
9 noteworthy multifamily developments to debut in 2022
A 1980s-era shopping mall turned mixed-use housing and a mid-rise multifamily tower with unusual rowhomes highlight the innovative multifamily developments to debut recently.