What is being built?

Demolition of the former Labour Guard buildings on Gellért Hill begins

Published

2023. 12. 18. 09:36

Magyar Építők

ZÁÉV is preparing the construction of MCC's new headquarters in the capital.

Demolition of the former Workers" Guard buildings begins, to be replaced by a new educational complex serving as the new Budapest headquarters of Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) will be built in their place, according to a statement issued by the educational institution on 15 December.

As they write, the buildings at 49-53 Somlói Street, which used to house the MCC's Budapest headquarters, are outdated in both their exterior and interior appearance; therefore, the foundation operating the talent training institution decided to replace the 50-year-old buildings of the Labour Guard, which were "gaping like a landscape pocket" on the side of Gellért Hill, with a modern educational complex that also meets the needs of the local population. The first major phase of the project, the demolition of the Somlói Road buildings, will start soon.

Building a campus rich in green spaces

Reminder: in December 2020, MCC announced an open architectural design competition for the design of a new building complex in Budapest on Somlói út. The first major step in this process is the demolition of the buildings on Somlói út, for which the public procurement tender was won by ZÁÉV Építőipari Zrt.. Based on the design competition, we previously discussed the Somlói út centre designed by Ybl Prize-winning architect Ferenc Marcell and his office, NAPUR Építész Iroda, in an interview State Secretary Balázs Orbán, chairman of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium board of trustees.

The former headquarters of the Workers" Guard will be replaced by a campus will be replaced by a campus rich in green spaces. Instead of the two current buildings, there will be only one, with a floor area similar to that of the larger of the two, thus creating a much more extensive open park area accessible to local residents.

Historically burdened, dilapidated building to be demolished

The Gellért Hill building complex, which was condemned to demolition before its construction, is historically very burdened, as it was the former headquarters of the Labour Guard; its condition has seriously deteriorated, so it was justified to create a new building that meets all the requirements of today.

They added: the old facility is unsuitable for the implementation of MCC's unique talent management programme, as its energy solutions, technological equipment are outdated, its waterproofing systems are broken, and its mechanical engineering is unsalvageable. "Experts agree that it is, in fact, unrenovable."

No work at night, building a carrot wall

There will be no night or weekend working during the works. The contractor will ensure that noise emissions do not exceed the noise exposure limit and will reduce the concentration of particulate matter by continuous repeated watering. In addition, during the demolition works, the contractor will collect waste separately and reuse some materials on site, which will also reduce heavy vehicle traffic. The demolition area will be surrounded by a 2 m high noise and dust barrier, which will also reduce the environmental impact of the works.

According to the announcement, by starting the demolition, Mathias Corvinus Collegium is making a number of additional commitments to address problems affecting residents in the area. One of these is the filling of a so-called cavity in the construction area, which will also eliminate the risk of the roadway collapsing, a risk that has existed for years. They added that the road will be closed for half a lane during the works.

Source : Link