The Tourist Hub of La Unión

History

La Unión is a municipality that has made its mark on the metal industry, specifically steel. At the end of the 19th century, the first buildings of the Maquinista factories were built, where the main activity was the extraction of metals from the mines in the mountains.

It was then that mining districts began to emerge, the industrial sector expanded, and the railways emerged. Her story has spread throughout Spain, and the machinist was well known for the events that took place in her factories.

Present

After the mining sector was abandoned, "La Maquinista del Levante" remained closed for much of that period, until today, partially deteriorating.

The city expanded until it was bordered by the railway line, creating narrow passages to the industrial complex, which remained outside the urban fabric.

Strategy

After several historical debates and analyses, the approach of non-intervention was followed in "The Machinist of the Levant," quoting Ruskin: " Restoration is the most complete destruction a building can suffer. To restore a monument is to destroy it in order to create false copies and imitations."

In this way, the project focused on connecting the urban area with the landscape and the industrial complex that was being divided by the railway, providing green and accessible infrastructure, reducing flooding and contamination from mining sediments in the urban fabric, etc. Furthermore, to provide a socioeconomic response to the municipality, an alternative program is proposed to boost the local economy through a Tourism Hub.

Methodology

The overwhelming scale, the relationship with the environment and the connection with the driver were difficult challenges to solve, so four different proposals were developed:

To create minimal visual impact, attention was paid to the geometry of the lines. From this point on, a series of basic architectural concepts were followed to develop the project:

PLANS