Page 117 - Vertical City

Postface 117

are attached. The architect’s projects are projected, but
this is done in the space of the plan, and by associating
his proposal to a theory of measure – this is the first
characteristic of this reflection on the “vertical city”.
Geometric paving, an extreme and punctual density in
the ground surface use, structural lightness and plasticity
are the principles that guide this openly reformist vision.

First point: geometry guides the best views, the best
exposition to sunshine; it allows for conciliation of a high
density and optimal regulation of climate; it is ruled by
a planar network of hexagonal meshes, according to a
principle that recalls, at the level of architectural decora-
tion, Egyptian pavements, and, at a territorial level, the
speculations of Walter Christaller in his central place
theory. The hexagonal grid has a long history behind
it, and here it is used in the creation of a small city of
30.000 inhabitants, an episode at a provincial dimension
in the polycentric organization necessary for the con-
temporary metropolis.

Second point: the technical network (water, energy,
data; or even pipes, cables and fibers, respectively
arranged according to their volume indicators) would
have a cost inversely proportional to the height of the
buildings they service. Beyond a certain threshold, the
financial cost of theses networks diminishes in propor-
tion to the number of stories constructed vertically
on the grounds pace. This is the decisive argument,
that which applies the principles of economy to the
construction of these edifices necessary for the devel-
opment of large urban territories. It is also the most