In recent years, the city hall of Lo Barnechea has made significant efforts to innovate and develop new models of social and affordable housing for its most vulnerable residents. These projects have focused not only on delivering a substantial number of high-quality homes, but also on the architectural design itself. As a result, it is possible to find notable projects by ELEMENTAL and Architect Cristián Undurraga across the commune. Continuing in this spirit of creativity and housing development, our firm was invited to design a project for more than 350 families on land currently occupied by the CPEIP (Center for Pedagogical Research and Experimentation).
The commission involves the design of 377 integrated housing units for the middle class, under Chile’s Social and Territorial Integration Subsidy Program ( Locally known as DS19), on a site of approximately 10 hectares with significant slopes in some areas. The site is located in a sensitive urban context, surrounded by high-end residential developments and schools. Due to this, the municipality initiated a public participation process that successfully transformed initial opposition into broad acceptance among stakeholders.
Taking into account the site’s topography and surrounding context, a territorial strategy was defined that includes the creation of an ecological conservation buffer along the western edge, distancing the new neighborhood from a natural ravine. Intervention zones are restricted to areas with gentler slopes, avoiding major earthworks and allowing those resources to be redirected towards improving housing quality.
The urban layout is structured around a continuous loop road with integrated bike lanes and green medians, from which secondary streets branch off to form the neighborhood’s internal fabric. Strategically located green spaces and public amenities are evenly distributed along this circuit, with varying scales—from small plazas serving individual housing clusters to larger communal parks for the whole neighborhood.
The housing program comprises three main typologies:
Single-family houses of 82 m²
Apartments of 70 m²
Apartments of 75 m²
These are designed to accommodate a variety of household types within the commune, fostering greater social integration.
The apartment buildings are located on the eastern portion of the site, where they can take advantage of panoramic views of the Santiago valley while maintaining a respectful distance from adjacent residential developments. The single-family homes are positioned on moderately sloped land, arranged into compact, stepped blocks that adapt organically to the terrain.
The project includes:
112 single-family homes
105 apartments of 70 m²
160 apartments of 75 m²
Approximately 1 hectare of public green areas
2.4 hectares allocated to ecological conservation
As for community facilities, the plan features a Community Center located at the heart of the project, which adapts to the site’s pronounced slope to generate a variety of flexible spaces on different levels. A Sports Complex is proposed near the project’s main entrance, offering residents spaces for recreational activities and privileged views over the neighborhood. Finally, commercial plinths are incorporated beneath the apartment buildings, serving as a strategy to mitigate the site’s slope while activating street life through local businesses and services.
Client: Municipality of Lo Barnechea
Beneficiaries: Comité de Allegados “Cerro 18”
Architecture Firm: Albert Tidy Arquitectos
Lead Architect: Albert Tidy
Collaborators: Sebastián Simonetti, Fernando Contreras, Ken Qiu, Ignacio Segura
Location: Lo Barnechea, Santiago, Chile
Year: 2018 –
Images: Ignacio Segura, Fernando Contreras, Sebastián Simonetti