MVRDV and Spanish architecture practice GRAS Reynés Arquitectos,
have completed the first phase of the Jumela project in Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
The first phase of construction, called the Jumela project,
includes the first five of the seven buildings in El Tirreno located around Plaza Jumela.
Each building is covered in bright colors, materials, and roof lines,
and is distinguished by its unique character derived from its colors, materials, and roof lines.
The project as a whole transforms the area around Plaza Jumela in the El Tirreno neighborhood.
Design features
MVRDV and GRAS added a total of 60 new residences of various sizes and types,
along with new commercial space.
The team will also transform El Tirreno into a vibrant,
green and sustainable residential neighborhood.
El Tirreno is located around Plaza Jumela, near the city’s port,
a historic neighborhood of Palma.
In the 1960s and 1970s the neighborhood was a center of nightlife,
featuring popular performances by musicians such as Jimi Hendrix, Ray Charles and Tom Jones in bohemian nightclubs.
After a long time, the neighborhood fell into neglect and began to decline,
while later, Mallorca-based Camper shoe brand, The Fluxà Family,
bought a series of adjoining plots of land around the Plaza.
This was with the aim of creating a renovation plan that reflects Camper’s philosophy of combining heritage, innovation and creativity.
The first phase of construction consists of five buildings, including the Jumela Centre,
which forms the heart of the neighbourhood.
The Jumela Center, renovated in 1979 by architect Pere Nicolau,
features a spacious courtyard with restaurant and office spaces on the ground floor.
The apartments rise around this courtyard in a series of terraces and terraces.
Red townhouses
Next to the center of Jumela are the red townhouses known as Las Casitas,
which create a landscape of rooftop terraces, allowing neighboring residents to socialize together.
Another development is Las Fabri-Casas, which is located across from Jumela centre,
on a prominent street corner.
Wrapped in blue terracotta facades, Las Fabri-Casas is a cluster of rowhouses with sawtooth roofs.
Behind this is a low-carbon, compressed-earth block apartment building,
with a communal rooftop pool offering views of nearby Bellver Castle.
The last residential component is a green building, called La Plaza,
located across the street in Plaza Jumela itself.
La Plaza is a conversion of an existing building hosting the historic Bellver’s Bar Revival,
offices and a communal deck with bay and cathedral views.
The team has designed Jumela buildings to be energy neutral,
implementing many of the same principles that meet the Passivhaus standard.
These strategies consist of high thermal efficiency and passive climate control measures,
such as shutters and cross ventilation to reduce energy needs.
To take advantage of Majorca’s many hours of sunshine, rooftops host solar panels,
while heat recovery systems reduce energy consumption in the buildings.
Many materials are sourced locally, which reduces the carbon footprint of construction.
A band that gives Gomila a new boost
The Jomela project is an exciting architectural project,
where each of the seven buildings can stand on its own as its own individual design.
However, at the same time, it is also carefully considered as a collection that gives Joumilla a new boost.
When we look together, we see a colorful group of buildings that still work together in some form as a group.
A concept that revolves around the diversity of buildings
In terms of urbanization, the concept revolves around the diversity of buildings,
and when some designs are more suitable for family homes,
others are more suitable for apartments for individuals or couples.
Some buildings are entirely residential, while others bring commercial functions into the mix,
and this diversity of people and spaces will help revitalize Tirino.
While the project of a new central Jumela is active in Palma,
it is a new meeting and point of reference not only for the residents of the neighborhood, but for all citizens.
The project was very well received and brought back the good memories Palmisanos had in the area.
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