Kopaszi Gát Tower

The 120-meter tower building is the first office building of this scale in Budapest. Its location was defined by the new master plan prepared for the area next to the Kopaszi Dam. It has been positioned at the northern entrance of the new development area, right on the waterfront, in the focal point of the new urban square. To strengthen the concept of the new square and foster urban life, we used several architectural tools: we opened the office lobbies to the square, designed an exclusive restaurant and different shops on the ground floor, and kept car traffic to a minimum.

The tower’s 1: 3-1: 4 façade ratios defined by Budapest City’s regulations and the adjoining podium determine the building form. The lower office wings at the edges of the two-story podium surround the site and turn up in a snake-like shape to the tower. Thanks to this frame, an intimate green garden was born on top of the podium, looking into the bay, sheltered from the noisy north side. We cut out the building mass at prominent locations and located entrances and main public spaces behind these focal points.

The three-story underground garage of the building is complemented by a two-story car park above ground level, at the busy Dombóvári street. This latest, besides cost reduction, also provides flexible use in the future, since its position and intentionally higher internal clearance can accommodate other than garage functions if needed later. The restaurants and shops on the ground floor are accessible to everyone and bring life to the site. The sky bar on top of the tower is also open to the public, showcasing a unique view of Budapest and the Danube River. On the first floor, we created a conference center with a café bar.

The façade forms a sawtooth wave, while the curtain wall’s surface is flat at the cut-outs. The shorter sides of the zigzag facade are made of solid, openable panels with perforated, stainless-steel plates in front of them. The pattern of the perforation is generated from images of Duna. Illumination at night amplifies the holes and creates an effect like Ned Kahn’s undulating surfaces.

Sustainable and active design strategies played an essential role in the creation of the building concept, which also had a direct impact on the architectural character. For example, we created community spaces that support the well-being of office workers, and we placed them at outstanding points of the tower, on the 10th, 20th, and 30th floors. Other decisions - such as designing easily accessible spectacular stairwells or placing bicycle storage at the immediate vicinity of main lobbies -, serve the same approaches, to encourage people to move inside and outside the building.