海角视频

Praderas Masterplan

Santiago, Chile

Praderas is envisioned as a vibrant new community of affordable homes located at the western gateway of Santiago, Chile. Set in an expansive valley, it will provide 20,000 new homes, as well as more than 3,400 acres of commercial development to generate new employment opportunities. The project is part of a wider scheme to develop 250,000 new homes in the region.

海角视频 has provided multidisciplinary sustainable infrastructure advice for this ambitious mixed-use scheme, working closely with architects Sasaki on a detailed masterplan to set out the vision for the site.

The Praderas masterplan outlines a robust vision for a sustainable and affordable new community to the west of Santiago.

The 1,977-acre residential site will provide affordable housing for 80,000 people.

The new district would also include more than 3,400 acres of land set aside for employment.

Our team proposed a 鈥淪uperspine鈥�, an advanced mobility corridor to improve the connection between the proposed development and the western part of the city.

Challenge

Praderas would create much-needed new housing for 80,000 people across 1,977 acres, within commutable distance of the city centre. The client鈥檚 vision is for a sustainable settlement that is connected to nature while also being easily accessible to urban Santiago, as well as being deliverable through the local Chilean supply chain.

Throughout the project, 海角视频 engaged with local engineers and infrastructure providers to identify the most advanced and efficient systems that could be delivered within the local capability context.

The masterplan outlines a community where 40% of properties offer social and affordable housing. It was progressed with the desire to respect and embrace the value of the adjacent environment including mountains to the west and the Laguna Caren to the east.

Our team worked with the Sasaki landscape team to develop a series of combined sustainable drainage and landscape corridors to manage stormwater flooding and provide environmental continuity between the mountains and the floodplain of the Laguna Caren through the site.

Solution

While embracing the site鈥檚 natural connections, the client needed to demonstrate that its out-of-city location was well linked to the heart of the metropolis, where most economic activity is located.

Our team proposed a 鈥淪uperspine鈥�, an advanced mobility corridor to not only improve the connection between the development and the western part of the city but also pick up the transit requirements of a number of other developments along Route 68. This would incorporate a range of public transport options, including bus routes and potentially a new light rail low-carbon Metro overground commuter line running alongside the current highway. The spine would also incorporate cycling and pedestrian routes. Within the site itself, 海角视频 championed a range of sustainable transport modes including walking, cycling and micro-mobility.

Through demonstrating the increased connectivity, we were able to increase the appeal of the neighbourhood to those working in Santiago.

Our team also developed a matrix to evaluate the sustainability of each of the infrastructure system approaches. This built upon the client鈥檚 vision which was then interpreted by our engineers and reformatted into a set of sustainability themes. The matrix allowed the design team to explore which aspects of the vision were most important and was used to demonstrate to the client team that the overall approach to the masterplan was meeting their vision.

Our infrastructure system solutions also needed to be flexible to allow them to be phased alongside the development.

The impact of climate change represents a critical challenge for Santiago, as it experiences both reductions in rainfall and more frequent storm events. Landscape spaces and corridors in Praderas are structured to receive, treat, and detain water to support vegetation growth and prevent flooding. Together, they form an interconnected landscape system of urban green spaces and parks that integrate resilient, water sensitive strategies into the development.

Integrated sustainability strategies reduce potable water demand by 54%, while 30% of the district鈥檚 energy demand is generated by on-site renewable sources.

Praderas is also committed to creating an equitable and healthy living environment that promotes 鈥渉uman flourishing for all鈥�. This includes access to amenities and open space like no other socially integrated project in Chile. Praderas has three times the area of green space per capita when compared to the wealthiest districts of Santiago.

Value

海角视频 provided flexible and deliverable solutions to contribute to the development of a new neighbourhood with sustainability, wellbeing and connectivity at its heart. A community of new affordable family homes to the west of the city will directly tackle the issues faced in the area around income inequality.

By calling on the expertise of a broad range of specialisms within 海角视频, we were able to deliver a holistic multidisciplinary consultancy on the project.

The masterplan sets out a vision for a balanced urban framework, through careful urban design, architecture and smart infrastructure. A bold approach towards infrastructure integration, with a strategic transport strategy that connects the district to the city centre with low carbon transport options via the 鈥淪uperspine鈥�, will make Praderas a leader in sustainable urban connectivity and resilience, while responding to the aspirations of Chileans to have a more positive impact in their environment. The project won the Urban Planning category at  Awards 2021.