Tihany Worker Hostel

Budapest University of Technology and Economics

Project idea

This project was a part of a 5 member group programme that focused on the wellbeing of the locals on a touristically overused island in Hungary. Each participant individually focused on a different problem to be solved at the given location. After consulting with the mayor and the locals the main needs and problems of the area have been indentified as the following:

- Lack of workforce (also lack of worker hostels as tourism and hotels generates more profit for the housing industry here). The workers do not want to commute a lot to the workplace as the working ours are high and demanding (10-12 hours a day) and little time would be left for sleep.
- Aging population due to increased housing prices (as the result of the increased tourism).
- Great need for „private” public spaces for the locals as the already existing ones are occupied by tourists.
- Because of the reason listed above the local community have shut down and is dismissive towards newcomers and temporary workers, excluding them from gatherings and social events.
- And as the last link of this process the workers who commute here (as housing is not provided) have been isolated from social circles, making the work experience mutch more stressful and lonesome.

I have choosen the first problem that I have tried to tackle by providing housing for the seasonal workers. This way the commuting time is reduced that leads to less air pollution (as it is a problem at the location due to reduced housing for workers).

Project description

The main goal was to create a hostel that is integrated into the fabric of the village as the scenery of the village needs to be protected. To contrast the rather traditional exteriour and shape of the buildings the relation of spaces show a contemporary approach. The hostel complex consists of four housing blocks and one community building. They are connected with a roofed walkway forming a connection just like a grape that is produced here. This form helps creating an inner community for the inhabitants trough the following aspects:

- The rooms only have heating kitchens, the main cooking kitchen, the dining room and the washing room is in the community building.
- The rooms have a joined halway equipped with sitting area that creates opportunities for encounters.
- The lawns of the buildings could be opened together with the hallway in good weather for joined activities.

The housing building layout consists of two room and a joined waterblock between them. The number of beds in the rooms vary depending on the number of workers and their needs. One, two or two bunkbed layouts could be arranged. The community building operates with an open layout that can be transformed depending on the activities and events held in there. The shorter facades facing the street and the inner parts of the site are given a solid stone cladding with the local stone type. This approach gives a consistent uniform look strengthening the feeling of belonging together. Opening inwards gives the needed intimacy on an overly touristic island.

Technical information

The project is easy to produce and understand in terms of building materials and structure. The masonry is ceramic on a concrete strip base, the windows are timber framed with timber elbows and a tinned outer edge. The slab is traditional in Hungary: precast liner bodies lined between concrete beams, with upper monolithic concrete cover after installation for better bonding. The wreaths are of locally made monolithic reinforced concrete structure. The roof structure is a traditional two-stand timber structure with a beaver-tail ceramic tile covering. The walkway connecting the houses is a steel support structure covered with metal tin plating, with small water spouts instead of gutters to drain water away from the houses. The external walkway is simply stone paved. The flooring of the houses is insulated with parquet flooring on the ground. In addition to the external walkway, the houses are characterised by the short, solid, local stone paved façades with gable walls rising above the roof structure.

In this project the low cost of building was extremely important as the organiser and investor of the project would be the municipality. These local goverments have very little money as everything gets centralised in Hungary. The site I have chosen was uninhabited in 2021 and perfectly located. The cost of the building and preservation could return from the rent.

Documentation

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