Buda's new residential and office building is a combination of historic and modern elements - VIDEO

In a busy part of District II, on the corner of Margit Boulevard and Rómer Flóris Street, Buda's new mixed-use development project, which includes residential and office space, has been completed. HomeWork. The renovation of Budapest's first „People's School” building with a decorative brick façade began in May 2020 by Codic Hungary Kft. The structural engineering and general contracting tasks were carried out by SWIETELSKY Magyarország Kft..

The project, which preserves the architectural values of the listed school building, will include 15 apartments on the top 2 levels and 3,600 square metres of office space on the lower levels, as well as a restaurant and café with a covered terrace for office workers, residents and guests. The combination of a fully renovated park, a serene internal garden and a green roof will create an additional 1,300 square metres of pleasant green environment, and a 500 square metre park and community space for the building's employees, which will also be open to the public.

The construction was completed in August 2023, and the technical handover and commissioning authorisation procedures are ongoing. Zsolt Pfeiffer, project manager of SWIETELSKY Magyarország, gave detailed information about the construction process.

"In September 2021, the construction of the façade, windows and insulation began with the renovation of the brick, stone and plaster façades of the existing building, under the strict supervision of the heritage protection authority. Once the building is fully structurally ready, the works on the new building structures, i.e. the high roof, the historic façade openings on the existing building and the façade openings, the fine concrete façade cladding, the flat roofs (extensive and intensive green roofs) and the façade insulation systems, will start from May 2022.

In December 2020, we also signed the contract for the remaining works: shell&core and the fit-out of the apartments, which included the construction of 3,600 square metres of rentable rental space with associated premises, underground parking, landscaped green areas, the turnkey completion of 15 apartments, and the renewal of the public sidewalk and gateway at the Rómer Flóris Street boundary."

The unexpected situations that arose were dealt with efficiently and quickly by the professionals

The building retains its original values, but also features modern architecture, and the licensing and design plans have been agreed and approved in several professional forums. The Department of Construction and Heritage Protection of the Government Office required a special permit to finalise the design documentation, approve the materials used, and carry out the construction of the structures and facades concerned by heritage protection. The works were supervised by a specialist heritage inspector and restorers.

"During the demolition work carried out by the structural engineers, we constantly encountered unexpected situations, which we solved together with the designer, the technical inspector and the investor. One of the challenges was the conversion of the existing building into an attic: all the original elements of the façade had to be retained, behind which the new reinforced concrete coffin slab was installed. The high roof, timber and plastered drawn cornices were built on the slab in the original form"