STUDIO1860
MULTIPURPOSE HALL at KURANI AINKAWA,Erbil,Iraq
MAIN OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT:- TO DEMONSTRATE THE USE OF COST EFFECTIVE AND ENVIRONMENT FRIENDLY TECHNOLOGIES WHICH COULD BE ADAPTED BY THE LOCAL PEOPLE IN THEIR OWN SHELTERS.
PROJECT AREA
# KURANI AINKAWA was an informal settlement until recently, when this UN-HABITAT and UNDP’s joint programme intervened for improvement.
# It is a neighbourhood in the central area of Erbil City, Erbil Governorate, inhabited by over 10,000 residents in over 1500 houses.
# It is an impoverished and culturally conservative community, first established in the 1960s when citizens who received the land as a form of compensation from the government put it on the market.
# From 1985 villagers informally occupied the neighbourhood’s private and government land. Since then, formal and informal dwellers illegally subdivided plots, and in many cases sold them on.
# As a result, this settlement’s legal status became questionable which led to lack of investment by local authorities on
physical and social infrastructure. # The community became to be perceived as a socially problematic community within Erbil, as well.
# Therefore, KuraniAinkawa was chosen as one of the two sites to pilot slum-like neighbourhood improvement in the UNHABITAT/UNDP programme aimed to improve the housing delivery system to Erbil
PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS
# The programme implemented jointly by UNHABITAT and UNDP in close partnership with the Erbil Governorate aimed to improve the housing delivery system in Erbil
#The programme started with funding from the ITF(Iraq Trust Fund) with in-kind cost-sharing by the Erbil Governorate in implementing the related works.
#UNDP organized four focused group sessions and one validation session within the community to incorporate preferences, needs and ideas of the community into the design of the multi purpose hall.
#The design was finalized after two further consultation sessions between the designer and the community.
#The multi-purpose community hall is designed not only to be community-friendly, but also environment-friendly by demonstrating a construction technique called "rat-trap brick wall" which reduces material costs and increases insulation properties. As the technique is also labor-intensive, employment opportunities will be enhanced in the construction, as well.
#An important element of the empowerment activities in Kurani Ainkawa and the capacity building of the Kurani Ainkawa;s community organization is building community ownership.
#It is expected that the more community ownership is strengthened and the more the community needs are met through the multipurpose hall, the longer the building will be well-maintained.
#Therefore, community engagement and empowerment activities are required to be well-knit together with the construction of the multipurpose community hall, and UNDP plans to continue engaging widely with the civil society active in ERBIL and the institutions of the Kurdish Regional Government(KRG) for this purpose.
 BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF SITE |  FLOOR PLAN |  13.jpg |
|---|---|---|
 TWIN DOMES OF MPH BUILDING |  VIEW FROM INNER COURTYARD OF HALL |  VIEW FROM THE REAR SIDE OF THE MPH |
 PARKING SPACE & SEATERSTODDLERS PLAY AREA |  VIEW SHOWING THE OUTDOOR CAFETERIA |  ENTRANCE PORCH |
 WATER FOUNTAIN WITH SEATERFOR COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION |  VIEW SHOWING THE CHILDREN COMMUNITY |  REAR END OF SITE USED AS PLAYGROUND |
 JOGGING TRACK WITH SEATERS & PLANTER |  WEEKLY SHOP AREA AND SMALL VENDOR KI |
MULTIPURPOSE HALL FLOOR PLAN- DESIGN FEATURES
DESIGN KEY FEATURES
# Seggregation of male and female activity areas with separate entries to the building as suggested by the community and as per the socio economic study by UNDP, Iraq
# Two halls for the income generating activities . The halls have a movable partition, thus, whenever needed the combined space could be used for social gathering or using the hall for film show and other community celebrations
# The two main domes over the halls are not only for thermal comfort during summer, it gives the building a strong visual presence in the local context - the changing perspertive of the building as one looks at it while driving past the front road is highly dynamic.
# The two open courtyards for the male and female sections are meant for meetings, performances.
# The inner walls facing the courtyards have the murals showing stories of the most important citadel of the Erbil city. It creates an ambience of the cultural past.
# The hollow special brick bond and the filler roof slab have been adopted in the design to reduce the recurring energy costs of the building
KEY FEATURES IN SITE DEVELOPMENT
# Jogging track of 2.4m provided along the boundary wall.
# The Bakery inside the MPH building could serve as a
cafeteria for the locals and an outdoor seating has been provided at the rear looking towards the open playground for this purpose.
# A Designated area for the setup of weekly shops and small kiosks have been suggested for more income generation for the community.
# Weekly Children Drawing Workshops or Competitions can be held and the community children’s works can be put up on the “Community Exhibition Panels” Area
# For more community participation, a number of outdoor sitout spaces as well as a water fountain with seaters have been provided to allow people to conduct gatherings or meetings here if required.
# The rear end of the site have been left vacant for future expansion, so for now we have made a proposal for a playground which can be used by the community