Heredia is the capital of the province of the same name. With a history of a fast and unorganised growth, this city has become a place to avoid and to visit only when it’s extremely needed, leaving some areas behind that became dangerous and in decay.
Through a series of mappings, I chose the most important areas, based on characteristics like the amount of people who uses them and the perception of danger by the citizens.
The final results point the central market and the train station as the most critical areas to recover. I made a master plan of the city, showing a possible 3 or 4 step guide to recover the sense of belonging from the citizens.
For the project i develop only the first step: the train station
The proposal counts with a full on restoration of the main building, which by 2017 was supposed to be used as commercial points but is abandoned. This building was made of bahareque, a technique of construction with bamboo that is rare and must be kept.
The areas get re-purposed: instead of waiting outside under the sun or the tropical rains the inside of the building becomes a waiting area with a proper ticket selling point and bathrooms.
As on the side of the building there is an unused 10m x 10m lot, i plan a cultural building with 4 floors, the first 2 for any activity or exposition, the third as a classroom for arts and media and the last one, a small café to support the rest of the program. This building will connect culturally with the other 3 points of the masterplan which already have a cultural impact.
The structure gets reinforced, the interiors show the old structure with a polycarbonate surface to protect it, for the floors i make a catalogue of the ceramic tiles of other patrimonial buildings and suggest some to be replicated and set in the middle of the main waiting area. On the ticket room side the rooftop structure will be uncovered and built with a material which is part acrylic and part of a reflective material, this to give light to this side of the city, to make the division between new and old more impactful and to convert this whole project in a node, a point of reference for everyone who visits.
