Na Knížecí - architectural competition

2025

Residential housing

Multifunctional

Study

The Na Knížecí apartment building connects modern housing with community life and sustainable principles. Thanks to a thoughtful architectural design, it will offer not only quality apartments, but also inspiring public and private spaces for meeting, relaxation and active life in the city.

Investor
Penta Real Estate
Adresa
Na Knížecí, Praha 5 – Smíchov
Architect
CASUA
Visualization
DOUSEK - ZABORSKY

Moderní bydlení s respektem k městu a komunitě

The courtyard of the house will become the heart of community life - from lounges, coworking zones and recreational areas to garden gazebos, barbecue areas or shared terraces.

The proposed building respects the urban concept of the surrounding block development. The residential building with a courtyard should offer residents not only a residential function, but also space for cultural, sporting and social activities. Community life can include common rooms, spaces for sports and recreational activities, coworking spaces, garden gazebos, places for communal barbecues, shared terraces, etc. All common areas should be as barrier-free and family and community friendly as possible.

The shape of the building creates a courtyard while taking into account setback distances
Housing (micro-apartments) combined with public amenities on the ground floor
Generous rooftop landscape with community function
Private community exterior space facing Toyen Street (greenery, workout elements, etc.)
Café with garden facing the pedestrian zone

FUNCTIONAL AND LAYOUT DESIGN

The unfavourable north-south orientation of the building to the cardinal points, which results from the urban design of the development area, is an absolutely essential factor for meeting the lighting/sunshine requirements of the residential units. For this reason, the unilaterally oriented dwellings are located to the south, east and west. The northern façade is used for staircases and for apartments with orientation to two cardinal points. Thanks to this solution, the number of unglazed apartments is minimized. Larger apartments are preferably designed in attractive locations. The 2+kk flats are situated towards the courtyard and on the corners of the towers, the 3+kk flats are on the last receding floors in places where there are terraces. The atmosphere of the living rooms is given by windows with a lowered sill, which bring plenty of daylight into the interior, as well as impressive views of Prague.

BLUE-GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE & TECHNOLOOGICAL SOLUTIONS

Thanks to thorough insulation of the building envelope and high-quality triple-glazed windows, the project achieves a low-energy standard. The building can also be realized in the energy passive standard. The implementation of this standard will be ensured by appropriate heating, ventilation and energy sources (geothermal boreholes, heat recovery, LED lighting, etc.). These panels can, for example, be used for hot water heating. Other roofs are planted with intensive or extensive greenery, which contributes to improving the microclimate in the area and also actively counteracts the temperature instability in the summer months in the apartments under the roof. The inner block is designed with a proportion of permeable or semi-permeable surfaces. Rainwater from the green roofs is captured in a storage tank and then used to water the greenery. The project can also manage water in other ways - e.g. grey water from roofs can be used to flush toilets.

Low-energy or passive building standard
Use of recycled materials (e.g. Rebetong)
Preference for materials with a low carbon footprint
Use of rainwater harvesting and reuse systems
Use of greenery as an active element
Use of alternative sources
Use of recuperation
Electromobility