TBSes are growing in strength - not only in number, but also in quality. After the experimental block in Wroclaw's Nowe Żerniki or the spectacular success of the architecture of the TBS building in Rybnik, another city can boast social housing in good taste. This time, however, we are talking about Warsaw, or more precisely - Falenica, where a TBS modern, although firmly rooted in the traditional architecture of the immediate area, was built on Derkaczy Street. How did the realization prepared according to the design of OPA Architekci studio turn out?
Falenica, located on the northeastern outskirts of Warsaw, used to be a basin of one-of-a-kind architecture. It was here that the famous "Świdermajer" was developed, a style pioneered by Michal Elwiro Andriolli, a draughtsman, painter and architect, who in the late 19th century erected dozens of villas along the river, combining features of Russian dachas and Alpine cottages, spiced with details created by the artist's lush imagination. Residents of the picturesque village, located on the Świder River (whence the style's name), quickly picked up the new way of building, increasing the number of buildings representing Świdermajer to about half a thousand.
New TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
Nowadays, although not many of them remain, Swidermayer villas still excite the imagination of historians, architects and residents of Falenica, which today is no longer a charming resort, but part of the capital's Wawer district. A lot has changed here, because in addition to villas and single-family houses, Falenica's residents are offered schools, supermarkets and even areas with denser, slightly higher buildings. One of these is on Derkaczy Street, where a TBS building has been constructed that combines two worlds - that of a fairy-tale, 19th-century Świdermajer, and that of Falenica, which has become a modern villa neighborhood, equipped with 21st-century infrastructure. In mid-May this year, the first tenants received the keys - what can they look forward to in their new apartments?
New TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
TBS Derkaczy in Warsaw
The TBS in Falenica was built on a plan resembling the letter "U," with a tight courtyard between parallel wings. On the four above-ground floors, 66 apartments have been planned, ranging in size from 34 to 75 square meters, which come in 1-, 2-, 3- and 4-room layouts. There is an underground floor under the building, which houses a garage with space for 67 vehicles. Additional parking spaces for people with disabilities have been located in front of the block.
The new TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
The whole development was squeezed into a small plot of land at the intersection of Derkaczy and Jagienki streets, right next to an earlier private multi-family building. There is plenty of greenery and single-family houses, including Świdermajer villas, all around. Although the Falenica TBS has four floors above ground, the location of the longer elevation along Derkaczy Street means that it does not dominate the surrounding development.
New TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
social świdermajer
The more than 12-meter-high building has a simple design at first glance, but the devil is in the details. Viewed from the outside, it draws attention primarily by the way it solves the balcony terraces, which come in two configurations. The first type is a classic loggia, built on both sides. The second, which makes up the majority of the balconies, was solved in the form of terraces appearing in front of the body of the building, one above the other. With the help of steel pillars, they were combined in such a way that they resemble verandas in front of Świdermajer villas. The effect is enhanced by the choice of finishing materials - both the balcony balustrades and the steel structures spanning between them were made in a color imitating varnished wood. Wood-like panels were also clad with fragments of the facade on the first and last floors.
New TBS block in Falenica
photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
Wooden references also appear in the interiors of the building, where panels and laths have been placed on the staircases; the doors leading to the apartments also have a similar texture. The apartments themselves are bright and spacious, in many of them the main room is accompanied by a kitchenette. The units have been partially finished - modestly, after all, this is a community building, but neatly. The apartments have also come with basic appliances, such as stoves.
The new TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
Taking into account the target group of tenants, the TBS on Derkaczy Street has been adapted to the needs of people with disabilities, primarily those in wheelchairs. Separate parking spaces are the norm, but in addition there were apartments designed without architectural barriers - without thresholds, even between the living room and the terrace. Bathrooms, in turn, have been equipped with sanitary facilities designed for people with mobility problems. Six such apartments have been created in the new TBS in Falenica.
The new TBS block in Falenica
photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
doubly eco
TBS Derkaczy was also conceived as an economical and ecological building. The construction cost of the building was about 36 million zlotys, which translates into just over 8 thousand zlotys per square meter of usable space. The building will also be economical in use - as the Warsaw City Hall assures, thanks to the solutions used, residents will not pay for energy for up to 9 months a year.
New TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
All this is thanks to the use of numerous energy-saving technologies - roof-mounted photovoltaic panels with energy storage, sufficient to keep the system running for two days, ground and air heat pumps and mechanical ventilation systems capable of heat recovery. This has made it possible to create a building that, in the words of Adam Goduslawski, chairman of the board of directors of TBS Warszawa Południe, is one of the first, and perhaps even the first passive multifamily residential building in Warsaw.
The new TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
a backyard for everyone
Although the plot on which TBS Derkaczy was built was not large, there was some land left for development around the building. Within it, above-ground parking spaces have been designated, reserved for people with disabilities, and common spaces have been arranged. Importantly, these will serve not only the residents of the new block, but also the entire neighborhood, as TBS in Wawer has not been fenced off:
In designing this building, we wanted to make a good place for residents to live, of course, but also a building that will not just be a bedroom community. The graduation tower has an integrative character. We hope that as many residents of the block as possible, as well as other Wawer residents, will sit on these benches and use this graduation tower. It is a piece of architecture for everyone
- said during the handing of keys to the first tenants Adam Goduslawki, chairman of the board of TBS Warszawa Południe.
The public-access graduation tower was located on the front square, facing Derkaczy Street. The structure, in the form of a vertical cylinder, is surrounded by rounded benches. These stand uncovered, without a canopy. This is a minor problem, however, because the graduation tower does not work in the rain, and when the sun gets too hot, one can easily access the courtyard arranged between the two wings of the building through a first floor clearance. It is relatively narrow, hidden in the shadow of the four-story building. An alley with benches runs through its center, with a lawn and hedges growing on the sides to provide privacy for the first floor residents. At the end of the path, in turn, a small square has been placed.
New TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
A visualization trap or a favorable compromise?
Although the TBS in Falenica looks very good, there's no denying that the building was supposed to look better. In the visualizations presented in 2023 by Aldona Machnowska-Góra, deputy mayor of Warsaw, the structure of the building was identical, but the colors hinted at a slightly better quality of finish, perhaps even in the form of covering the building entirely with wooden or composite panels. The current state is somewhat different from what we expected from the illustrations released two years ago - the facades are largely finished with light-colored panels, which stand out strongly from the metal balcony railings and window woodwork.
The new TBS block in Falenica
Photo: Rafał Motyl © UM Warszawa
But should this affect the assessment of a building that was built as part of social housing, offers rents of less than 30 zlotys per square meter, and is environmentally friendly and well integrated into its immediate surroundings? Building often turns out to be an art of compromise, and in this case its findings seem very favorable. It remains to be hoped that the TBSes that have been established recently, including the one in Falenice, are not exceptions, and that the planned government funds will allow to increase the share of social housing stock, while maintaining a high quality of architecture.
