Balaguer Law Courts, Lleida

About

Located by the River Segre, Balaguer is the capital of La Noguera – the largest county in the province of Lleida, and one of the most heterogeneous due to its different types of landscape –, and also of one of the seven judicial districts of Lleida. The town is an important horticulture and industrial center, located 30 kilometers north of the capital of the province. Inserted in the densely-woven tissue of narrow alleyways of the town’s historic center, the project had to make compatible the program of a law courts building with the specificities of its location. The new law courts building is located in the town’s center, one of the most important Arab historic centers in Catalonia, characterized by the earthy tones, its high-density town center, and an irregular morphology that gradually adapts to the contours of the site. The structure of narrow alleys and porches generates shaded spaces and different perspectives, constantly unveiling a variety of urban situations. One of the challenges was to make compatible a complex judicial program – with very specific functional requirements – with the building’s location – an old quarter with a complex geometry and two-meter wide alleys. The project starts from the interior, shaping the program, looking for an even and orderly interior structure or logic via a grid scheme. At the same time, the project undertakes a study of the place as an archaeologist would: seeking, analyzing, and identifying remains of it past – traces, stories, and legends – and of its present – climate, morphology, topography, social context, urban references...

Sources

• Arquitectura Viva