Akumal Monterrey // Sordo Madaleno

Text description provided by the architects.

Akumal Monterrey is a new residential project being developed in the Monterrey metropolitan area of San Pedro Garza García, a vibrant zone that is a landmark in Mexico’s northeast for its rapid urban and commercial expansion.

Topography, panoramic views, and a residential context are the three factors that make up the conceptual pillars of the project’s formal language.

The first factor, an imposing topography with significant slopes, sets out the strategy of how to adapt to the terrain in order to implement the second factor: taking advantage of the panoramic views over the Cerro de la Silla, Cerro de la Corona, the Chipinque eco-park and the skyline of the city of Monterrey.

Balance and symmetry are the generative ideas in support of the formal process.

There are two main axes emerging from the center of the site that governs the overlapping and rotation of two symmetrical curved bodies in the direction of these axes. The geometry forms a cross that rises in three different blocks, forming a total of eight stories plus a further setback floor.

The resulting volumetry permits openings towards the best views of the city, a broad façade for natural illumination and ventilation, and a significant surface area allocated to greenery.

In the spaces formed between the intersections of the volumes, gardens and terraces are inserted for the units located at these points.

The façade, formed by pigmented concrete brise-soleils and large windows, is designed with harmonious proportions through modules that directly respond to the interior program of the different apartment types.

The concrete volume, with a sandy color, is sited carefully in order to give prominence to the green areas.Upon entering the development, residents are welcomed by a rotunda, pools of water, and planting. The entrance experience seeks to isolate visitors from the noise of the exterior and generate a sense of curiosity to discover the spaces, explore the volumes and perceive the changes in heights produced by the play of light and shadow.

After entering the building, the arrival lobby provides direct connections to the various spaces of the complex, including the amenities and the gardens to the rear.

At the center of the building there stands the “Oculus,” an open, circular space with a diameter of 12 meters that provides views and lets light from above into the inward-facing apartments.
The architectural program comprises 67 apartments across nine stories and the complex amenities, which are divided into wellbeing areas (gym, swimming lane, spa and Zen garden) and social areas (multipurpose room, toy library, games room, business center, grill area and culinary center).

The building presents four different apartment types: 12 Garden Villas distributed over the first two floors of the building, with private gardens and direct access to the shared green areas.

The subsequent four floors are occupied by 40 Residences. The next two floors boast 13 Sky Homes, available in Simplex and Duplex combinations. Crowning the building are 2 Penthouses with ample social and private areas offering privileged views over the whole complex. Akumal Monterrey distributes the movements of residents over six vertical circulation hubs, two in the center and four to the sides, meaning there are a maximum of three units per nucleus, affording greater privacy to each apartment..

Akumal Monterrey Gallery