STARA OSADA
status
competiton, 1st place
year
2026
place
Židenice, Brno, The Czech Republic
team
Filip Hermann, Janosch Welzien, Štěpánka Úlehlová, Adéla Lendělová, Magdaléna Sovjáková
The barrier of the busy streets of Svatoplukova and Gajdošova is transformed into a new urban avenue. The Stará osada transport interchange is transformed into Stará osada Square, which seamlessly transitions into a marketplace and a park. The square, located at an important transport hub, is defined by significant public amenities, such as a municipal building, a mixed-use building, a tennis centre, residential buildings with active ground floors, a primary school, and a town hall. These structures, together with other public functions, create clearly legible “walls” of the space and reinforce its urban character. Both through traffic and transfer traffic, which naturally bring life to the square, are clarified and capacity-optimized.
Stará osada gains its own distinctive character – it stands at the boundary between the original urban block structure and the prefabricated housing estate, without fully belonging to either of these systems. The proposal develops and strengthens this specific identity. The vertical articulation of the new buildings connects the linear and block structures. At key points, such as in front of the school or the town hall, high-quality public spaces are created to support community life.
Around the newly defined urban avenue, we reinforce a continuous structure of block development by filling in gaps, creating clearly legible street fronts that correspond to the character of the place. The proposal reconnects Židenice, which is currently divided by transport infrastructure, while also strengthening permeability through the area – from Nová Zbrojovka to Akátky, from the tram line to the railway stop, and from the square to the cemetery. At the same time, it connects and develops the system of parks and public recreational landscapes.
The square is designed as a lively yet safe space. The streets bring natural movement and urban life into it, while the public areas are spatially structured by vegetation, especially rows of trees and planting strips. Traffic throughout the area is calmed; new crossings and permeable intersections strengthen pedestrian connections and give priority to pedestrians.
Stará osada gains its own distinctive character – it stands at the boundary between the original urban block structure and the prefabricated housing estate, without fully belonging to either of these systems. The proposal develops and strengthens this specific identity. The vertical articulation of the new buildings connects the linear and block structures. At key points, such as in front of the school or the town hall, high-quality public spaces are created to support community life.
Around the newly defined urban avenue, we reinforce a continuous structure of block development by filling in gaps, creating clearly legible street fronts that correspond to the character of the place. The proposal reconnects Židenice, which is currently divided by transport infrastructure, while also strengthening permeability through the area – from Nová Zbrojovka to Akátky, from the tram line to the railway stop, and from the square to the cemetery. At the same time, it connects and develops the system of parks and public recreational landscapes.
The square is designed as a lively yet safe space. The streets bring natural movement and urban life into it, while the public areas are spatially structured by vegetation, especially rows of trees and planting strips. Traffic throughout the area is calmed; new crossings and permeable intersections strengthen pedestrian connections and give priority to pedestrians.