Green View Tower

MJARC Arquitetos was invited to rehabilitate the Torre de Santo António, a building that has punctuated the landscape of Covilhã for more than 50 years. Built in the 70s and consisting of 20 floors, this tower was never completed and has remained abandoned ever since. The rehabilitation project aims to preserve and revitalize the existing building, avoiding its demolition and the consequent need for new construction.

The strategy adopted by the design team and developers focused on maximum reuse of the existing structure. With the aim of maintaining more than 65% of the original structure, including beams, columns and slabs, as well as 75% of the original core, the aim is to reduce the need for new construction materials, resulting in significant embodied carbon savings. This approach promotes sustainability and values the history and identity of the building. The residential building will consist of 16 floors above ground and will consist of 87 apartments with typologies T2 and T3.

Located in the Serra da Estrela mountain range and 50 meters high, the tower is the tallest building in Covilhã, offering panoramic views over the surrounding area and opening up to the mysterious “Covilhã sea.” Additionally, the building will have several amenities for residents, such as a gym, a coworking room and a laundry room.

A parking lot will be built adjacent to the building whose roof will be transformed into a green space with a water mirror, providing outdoor leisure areas for residents. The tower’s facade will be revitalized with the addition of horizontal elements and green areas that expand to the along the building, integrating in harmony with the mountain landscape. The chromatic options on the facade highlight and reinforce this connection with the surrounding nature. As Carl Elefant, former president of the American Institute of Architects, says,

“the greenest building is the one that already exists.” The rehabilitation of the Santo António Tower exemplifies this commitment to sustainability and architectural preservation.