Satara Municipal Corporation

A municipal council building is one the most important place in a city or a town as it the place from where the citizens get governed by the government body. It is a place where people expect easy and comfortable governing process to help them lead a quality life in the city. Typically in our country people have perceived government buildings to be very rigid and unwelcoming in terms of working and their overall physical environment.

The idea of a municipal council building in Satara is to have welcoming a building which generates positive energy among the citizens who are the main stakeholders of the city. The building provides a quality public space as well and controlled administrative space for the people. The idea of giving a quality space was to consider people coming from smaller towns & villages around for work who may spend time in the building for almost an entire day and need to relax in between. Thus the building demonstrates porosity with respect to public space and acts as a connector The building proposes civic and commercial typology of building having seamless public space on ground as well as upper levels of the building. This typology will set a precedent for the commercial buildings in the surrounding where multiple levels of buildings will be connected horizontally. The public circulation in the building is seamless on ground and first floor for the people to access public areas on the first three floors. Equal importance is given to multiple entry points in the front and the back side for people visiting the building from multiple directions of the city. The building also provides opportunity to become a prominent public space with the administrative and commercial context around it. The location of the cafe creates a social node for the hospitals and offices around where it becomes a shared public space.

The proposed passive techniques have been used to keep the building cool even in summers. The glass roof above the atrium helps the hot air to rise which gets ventilated the sides. The terraced landscape on the south side cuts down the harsh sunlight thus reducing the load on mechanical ventilation. Green technologies like community water harvesting in coordination with government buildings in the vicinity will help create awareness among the people to conserve water which is depleting day by day. The proposed public space around it will help to create a sense of ownership for the natural resource among the people.

The overall form of the building will create an iconic frame for the citizens and the visitors and enhance the image of Satara city. This public Building Will Create Image of the city and become memory for many.