Fogarassy Réka
Architecture MA
supervisor
Marián Balázs
masterwork consultant
Aurelie De Smet
masterwork opponent
Cseh András
thesis consultant
Szarvas Márton
thesis opponent
Csurgó Betti
masterwork
community social housing in Újpest
My plan responds to the current state of the Hungarian social care system, with a focus on the opportunities of the homeless. My aim was to create a coherent inner system in the building where, in addition to meeting basic human needs, residents get the chance to re-enter society in a safe and inclusive environment. The venue in Újpest, near Népsziget island, consists of a school building, two factories and a gallery, all abandoned – a complex of buildings of different ages and nature. I experimented with the conditions of liveable yet purposely transitional housing, using the tools of the spatial culture of cooperative residential communities, creating small, arrangeable residential units. In addition to the housing units, on the ground floor there is a soup kitchen, and there are workshops and spaces that support the reintegration activities of the care system. On the top of the former factory there is a rooftop garden, which serves two purposes: creating jobs and opening towards the neighbourhood.
thesis
Social reintegration
Case studies on implementation and operation
Homelessness and housing poverty pose significant social challenges in Hungary and in several other European countries, and the responses to this problem may vary greatly by country. In my thesis I present good examples: I analyse, in detail, two programmes for the reintegration of homeless people in Western Europe, namely in Paris and in Brussels. The two programmes are quite different in terms of scale and tools, but their approach to reintegration and to the quality of space have similarities. As I explore these projects, I seek to answer the question why they are in such a contrast with the Hungarian situation and I try to identify the differences in the social policy of the two cities analysed.
