‘10th of July’ Family Group's Community Hub
by Habitable
San Juan de Lurigancho, Lima, Peru
Project details
Year
2024
project year
Under construction
Land area
90 m²
Project Website
Team credits
collective
- Habitable -
Andre Velasquez,
Ariadna Meza,
Maria Paz Cuadra,
Ernesto Salinas,
Micaela Cespedes,
Ryan Marin,
Maria Luisa Pastor,
Leticia Rios,
Natalia Huerta,
Claudia Torrejón.
- Common Pot 'Madres Trabajadoras' -
Sonia Taipe
- Agrupación Familiar 10 de Julio -
Cristian Vásquez,
Sabina Pacco,
Martha Quispe,
Juan Carlos Pillaca.
- Instituto de Desarrollo Urbano – Cenca -
Freyre Pedraza,
Juan Carlos Calizaya,
Alberto Amanzo.
Founded in 2011 in the José Carlos Mariátegui Human Settlement in the outskirts of Lima, Peru, the Family Association ‘10 de Julio’ addresses the needs of over 60 families living in extreme poverty without access to basic services like water, sewage, and electricity. In response to the health and economic crises exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, the community organized the ‘Madres Trabajadoras’ initiative to ensure daily meals. Lacking adequate cooking facilities, residents initially built a temporary wooden structure that was insufficient in size and equipment.
In partnership with the organization Habitable, a new community centre will be constructed featuring a common kitchen, meeting areas, training workshops and hygiene facilities. Currently, community members are engaged in land levelling and reinforcing the containment wall as part of a neighbourhood consolidation plan aimed at securing public services and reclaiming public space.
The facility will benefit over 60 families by providing spaces for meetings, workshops and storage. Additionally, it will serve youth with educational and cultural activities for 152 children, while a designated orchard will allow the community to grow their own produce, fostering food sovereignty and reducing reliance on external sources.
The project emphasizes participatory methodologies and popular education techniques, aimed at enhancing the community’s self-management and organizational capacity. Locally sourced materials and an open architectural plan challenge the stigmatized building materials typically found in Lima’s peripheral areas. The design incorporates elements such as Oriented Strand Boards (OSB), wood, and corrugated roofing sheets, creating a visually striking and cohesive environment. By utilizing these materials, the project aims to redefine perceptions of what constitutes acceptable building materials in these communities, demonstrating that functionality and beauty can coexist. Ultimately, this design philosophy fosters a sense of local identity and encourages community engagement, underscoring the importance of sustainable practices in shaping the urban landscape.
Habitable is a transdisciplinary non-profit founded in 2021 by Peruvian architect Andre Velasquez and co-founders Ariadna Meza and María Paz Cuadra, both sociologists, and Ernesto Salinas, also an architect, to address the need for cooking and gathering spaces for ‘Common Pots’, a survival strategy that emerged during the Covid-19 pandemic in Lima.
The organization facilitates social habitat production through participatory methodologies and popular education techniques. The team consists of architects, sociologists, anthropologists and communicators who work to enhance the self-management capacity and organizational strength of local communities while improving their habitat and quality of life. Habitable believes that communities should take the lead in creating their own environments, empowering them to make informed decisions.
Its mission focuses on strengthening the self-management capacity of peripheral communities in Lima to enhance living conditions. By prioritizing local needs, Habitable’s holistic approach addresses the right to habitat, environmental justice and gender equality, challenging traditional practices with a participatory model. Furthermore, by advocating for urban agriculture, the initiative promotes food sovereignty and short supply chains, effectively reducing the carbon footprint associated with food transportation.
The aim is to establish a community centre in this underserved neighbourhood through a participatory design process. The facility will serve adults and children alike, and the community has already begun preparation work for this essential space. The ‘10th of July Family Group’s Community Hub’ not only unites the community around food but also showcases a meticulously crafted design. The prize money will fund the materials and construction of the centre, which has been collectively designed by the community.
- Information for the project text was provided by Habitable -
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Advisory Committee Statement
‘10th of July Family Group’s Community Hub’ receives the award for Local Scale for exploring public space as a vital component of quality of life. In an initiative that brings the community together around food, the project also demonstrates a carefully crafted design with great attention to detail. While it has a local impact, it also serves as an international model, particularly as an initiative that began during Covid-19 and has continued to support the community at a new level. This shows how much the organization is embedded in this community.