The ‘Melting Pot’ is a competition entry by CEBRA and takes the form of a sports centre for no less than 13 different activities, with more in the pipeline as the concept involves an open arena with multipurpose spaces.
Located on the edge of Randers downtown (Denmark ) and designed as a connection point to surrounding nature and suburbs, the proposal looks to bring the people together by forming a gathering point for a diverse local community. Wrapped up in a natural green frame yet facing the vivid city the Melting Pot subsequently connects the city with nature.
It is a ‘plug-in’ concept consisting of seven building blocks, each block representing new types of sport zones. The concept leaps from the 200m running track which is lifted to the first floor making it the most significant activity of the concept concerning size and thus visibility.
This almost hovering design of the running track outlines the main shape of the building and makes it visible to the surroundings, allowing CEBRA to plug in the remaining blocks underneath the running track to make space for a range of athletics, beach volley, a ball court, a 60m running track, bouldering and a pole vault. The multipurpose aspect of these spaces emerges through the layout of the conceptual building, leaving them open to diverse ideas and usage.
The running track is draped in a glass volume along the longest sides and entrance of the ground floor forming an open view for the users and generating an inviting facade to the people outdoors. Saturating both the inside and outside of the building this transparent concept unifies the best from training inside with the free feeling of training outside.
The multi-arena proposal is the essential corner piece of a bigger rescheduling of the surrounding landscape Nordre Fælled, rethinking and gathering the northern part of Randers as an area of physical activity. The openness goes through the whole concept of the Melting Pot creates a visual and physical connection between in- and outdoor.