Winner Better Cheaper Housing by Hugo Lamont (IRL) and Andrew Griffin (IRL)

Congratulations Hugo & Andy!!!

‘Better Cheaper Housing’ by Irish architects Hugo Lamonte and Andrew Griffin won the competition for the site in Dublin and Italian architects Marco Plazzogna and Silvia Bertolone won with their submission for the Cork site entitled ‘Refilling Green’. The two sites offered different sets of challenges, but were rooted in the two overarching problems of Irish Housing – how to expand the city and how to counteract suburban decline.

The Dublin winner ‘Better Cheaper Housing’ correctly notes that the open space is underused and lacks a consistent and clear edge condition. It proposes a new curving wall of apartments to both the park and the infill site. The inhabited wall rises and falls in height and opens and closes in plan in response to differing site conditions adjoining.

2008 was the first year of Ireland’s participation in Europan with competitions on two sites; Cork City Council provided a Greenfield site in Cork and Dublin City Council provided a suburban site in south-west Dublin. Submissions were received from 36 teams across Europe. 73 European Cities in 22 countries held competitions.