MVRDV introduces vibrant social housing 'ilot queyries' to bordeaux

ilot queyries, a new neighborhood

MVRDV completes construction of ilot queyries, a courtyard apartment building providing 282 homes — including 128 for social housing. along with the residential program, the project hosts parking, commercial space, a rooftop restaurant, and a large collective green space. located to the east of the river garonne in bordeaux, across from the city’s UNESCO world heritage historic center, the building is part of a new neighborhood of four buildings masterplanned by MVRDV alongside joubert architecture.

images © ossip van duivenbode | @ossipvanduivenbode

mvrdv’s light-filled housing

ilot queyries is envisaged as a test-bed for the principles of the neighboring bastide-niel masterplan, also designed by MVRDV, which aims to combine the virtues of bordeaux’s UNESCO world heritage historic city — intimacy, surprise, and liveliness — with the density, ecology, light, and comfort of the modern city. ilot queyries thus adopts the same approach as the bastide-niel masterplan. the building fills the site to its boundaries, lending an intimate feeling to the streetscape, while the roofs are arranged into carefully calibrated slopes to provide maximum ventilation, daylight, and sun to the building itself and to its neighbors.

a massive green courtyard

the result, designed together with local architects flint, is a large, irregularly shaped courtyard building almost 200 meters long (656 feet). the large courtyard provides a park-like space for the residents; located one story above ground level, it also hides the residents’ parking below. the building responds to its surroundings on all sides — on the south-eastern end of the building, sections as low as one story relate to the low-rise neighbors, while on the north-east, facing the river, it rises as high as nine stories. at this high point, a glass crown houses a restaurant with views of the river and the historic center of bordeaux beyond.

on all sides, the façades facing the street are lower than those facing the central courtyard. in accordance with the rules developed in the bastide-niel masterplan, the roof slopes vary between 14 degrees and 45 degrees depending on their relation to the sun. these slopes create complex and interesting interior spaces, which help to define varied apartments in a wide range of sizes – making the building home to many different types of resident, while also giving a unique and homely feel to each living space.

MVRDV founding partner winy maas comments: ‘the COVID-19 pandemic showed everyone how valuable outdoor spaces close to their homes can be, and I hope ilot queyries can show that such amenities don’t require compromise. the building creates close and intimate streets without ugly parked cars thanks to its ample car parking. at the same time every apartment is provided a balcony or loggia, while the green park space becomes a wonderful community amenity.’

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project info:

project title: ilot queyries
architecture: MVRDV | @mvrdv
location: quai de queyries, bordeaux
co-architects: flint
landscape design: sabine haristoy
client: kaufman & broad, ADIM
founding partner in charge: winy maas
partner: bertrand schippan, jeroen zuidgeest
design team: nils christa, marie saladin, thomas boerendonk, roxana aaron, marco gazzola, adam mierzwa, florian hoanen, antoine ceunebroucke
completion: 2021
photography: © ossip van duivenbode | @ossipvanduivenbode