H3O Park

H3O PARK is located along the third fountainhead of the city of Belo Horizonte in the middle of Favela da Serra, an informal settlement with a population of 50.000 inhabitants living in 15.000 dwellings close to Serra do Curral.

The government created the Vila Vila project which is considered as the biggest slum upgrading ever made in Brazil. Consisting in urbanization of villages and slums, regarding sanitation improvement, construction of 900 new dwellings, restructure of the road system, implantation of three parks and sports and leisure facilities.

The program was created with intense participation of the population through participatory budgeting. One of its main points is the relocation of families living in risk areas to the new housing of the project, which is located in the same area, instead of removing them to new settlements in locations far from the city center, as occurred in previous projects.

The project includes the remediation of the water streams, the preservation of native species of the park and will host leisure areas, fitness equipment (academy square), walking tracks, an x-park and a community center. The Community Center will host a school for environment education, a nursery, kids rooms, collective kitchens, fitness equipment, workshops, and open theater.

With a low budget, the concept of the building is quite simple: activities blocks separated by circulation and internal patios covered by a green envelope of perforated steel plate.

Two different systems were used in the construction: a pre- fabricated steel structure for the roof and a conventional Masonry wall system. Firstly the roof was raised providing shelter for the works during the construction, and it not only protects the building from insulation and rain , but also creates an open space that is fully integrated with the outside area. The building remains open, accessible and inviting to the user. The metal roof has several openings that frame part of the neighborhood landscape and skylights, ensuring light and ventilation throughout the building.