The proposal for the Nursery–Kindergarten Competition in Chania, Crete, is conceived as a low-rise public building complex integrated with a neighborhood park. The project responds to the site’s geometry, topography and building regulations by organizing the program into a linear arrangement that maximizes open space and public accessibility while ensuring controlled privacy for its users.
The building is positioned along the higher eastern edge of the plot, taking advantage of the flatter terrain and westward views towards the port and the sea. This strategy allows the remaining area of the site to be dedicated to an open park, accessible from all surrounding streets and connected to the wider urban fabric. The initial building mass is subdivided into two volumes to accommodate the nursery school and the elderly day-care center in separate construction phases, as required by the brief. Despite this division, the volumes maintain a unified architectural language through a shared structural grid and consistent material expression.
Outdoor courtyards are placed between the building volumes and function as transitional spaces that support interaction between different age groups while maintaining clear functional boundaries. Due to coverage limitations, the program is distributed across two levels. The majority of shared and activity spaces are located on the ground floor, with direct access to the outdoor areas, while sleeping spaces and administrative offices are positioned on the first floor to ensure quieter conditions.
A metal structural frame wraps the complex and supports vertical rotating panels and roof canopies. This secondary skin provides solar control, enhances privacy, and visually connects the separate volumes into a cohesive whole.
The surrounding park is designed as a continuous pedestrian route along the length of the plot, incorporating varied planting and landscape elements to improve the local microclimate. The northern edge accommodates parking, using the site’s slope and linear gardens to limit visual impact and filter noise and pollution from adjacent streets.