Waterpark in Środa Śląska Waterpark in Środa Śląska
Środa Śląska is one of the oldest towns in Lower Silesia. The location on large clay deposits and the historic brick buildings encourage to use this material also in new investments, and the beautiful waterpark that has just been put into use can be an example.
The swimming pool at the Kilińskiego street is one of the most-anticipated investments for the residents of Środa Śląska. They will no longer have to commute several dozen kilometers to the nearest pool, and additionally, they gained an interesting object in the picturesque and popular part of the city, the so-called "Kajaki” (“Canoes”) lake. The pool is closely related to the residents also due to the fact that its shape was determined for instance by the history of Środa Śląska.
Valuable history
Środa Śląska is primarily famous for the Środa treasure, discovered in the 80's. The crown jewels from the Middle Ages discovered by accident are considered one of the most valuable and at the same time, the most amazing discoveries of the 20th century in Europe. Today, the Środa treasure can be viewed in the old town hall, which is the seat of the Regional Museum in Środa Śląska. It stores very valuable exhibits, and the building with a brick façade is itself a valuable monument. Many other historical buildings were been built of brick, including the heart of the Middle Market Square – the St. Andrew’s Church (the façade of which is partly made of brick and partly plastered) and the tower-belfry located next to it, as well as the defensive city walls, a former hospital (currently an orphanage), the church of the Saint Elevation of the CRoss or a historic power plant. The new swimming pool with a clinker red façade refers to these classic brick buildings. Other factors also contributed to the selection of clinker.
Clinker treasure
“When choosing the material for the façade, we paid attention to the technical parameters – we wanted the walls to have high thermal insulation, which would reduce the expenses associated with the heating in the future. That is why we decided to use a three-layer barrier with a clinker brick façade,” says Piotr Dominiczak from the Architectural Studio Piotr Dominiczak i Mariusz Szczuraszek which designed the building. In addition to a very favorable heat transfer coefficient, bricks are durable and extremely resistant to the influence of various external factors. This is an important advantage in the case of public facilities, because less durable materials quickly require renovation, which is a serious administrative and logistic undertaking. The proximity of large clay deposit and the Röben production plant whose bricks were used also contributed to the selection of clinker. “In addition to these more direct reasons, our decision was influenced by the desire to refer to what Środa Śląska is famous for, which is the Środa treasure,” says Piotr Dominiczak. “Clinker, as a noble, durable and valuable material, can be associated with treasure. The location of the building was also an inspiration for the use of clinker bricks. It is situated on a hill, overlooking a beautiful recreational area with a pond. “The topography of the area made the building stay on a slope – it falls towards the lake. The use of natural material, which is a clinker brick fired from clay, allowed not only to effectively solve technical problems, but also to refer to the natural landscape,” explains Piotr Dominiczak. “Bricks perfectly reflect the nature of the connection of the object with the area,” he adds.
In harmony with the surroundings
The location on the slope adjacent to the "Kajaki" water reservoir had an impact on the form of the object. “While shaping the building, the adjustment of its architecture to the topography of the area was an important element,” says Piotr Dominiczak. “At the length of the swimming pool, the difference in levels is approximately 3.2 m. This caused the need for a "stepped" location of the rooms,” adds the architect. What is more, the northern part of the town, where the swimming pool is located, is distant from the industrial zone of Środa Śląska and is primarily a recreational place. “Building plans provide for single-family houses in this district. For this reason, we did not want the pool building to stand out due to its large size,” says Piotr Dominiczak. In order for the pool to refer to the atmosphere of a housing estate, a heavily fragmented shape was designed, in which the functions of the building were hidden, and the whole was covered with a roof with different inclinations (from flat to steep), and also with different directions of decline. As a result, the swimming pool is not an aggressive dominant in the landscape, it does not overwhelm with the size, it only harmoniously fits into the landscape of the hill and the pond lying at its foot.
Technical side and materials
Formally, the swimming pool in Środa Śląska is a three-storey building with a total area of 3540.7 m² and a volume of 12,950 m³. The object is made from traditional reinforced concrete, while most of the walls are built in a three-layer technology. About 50,000 pieces of smooth red clinker bricks Melbourne in the NF format ensure durability and aesthetics of the curtain wall. The insulating layer is a 12 cm thick, water-repellent, mineral wool. The thermal insulation of the supporting layer is ensured by ceramic hollow blocks of the Röben brand, 24 cm thick. There are large glass windows in the façade which provide lightness and modernity. The steep roofs are covered with titanium-zinc steel sheets and the flat roofs are covered with thermo-weldable roofing paper.
Rich interior
The designers used the level differences to acquire spatial values of the object structure and as an asset in shaping the interior. This is most visible in the entrance hall, which in fact covers the two levels of the building. Above the entrance there is a mezzanine café – glazed from the side of the façade and from the side of the hall. It is located in the most exposed point of the facility, from which you can admire the idyllic landscape around the swimming pool, as well as a wider panorama of the town. The internal glazing enables to view the swimming pool hall with the most important sports swimming pool from many places in the facility. The inhabitants of Środa Śląska and the neighboring villages can train on six tracks, in a pool measuring 12.5 x 25 m and at the depth of 140 to 180 cm. One track is permanently reserved for swimming lessons, so it has been equipped with shallowing platforms. During the competition, the sports swimming pool can be admired from the auditorium, which has about 165 seats. The swimming pool also has a recreation area, including a smaller pool with a geyser, massage, artificial wave grotto and a small slide. There is also a large forty-seven meter wide slide. Children can spend time in a shower tray, while the older visitors can relax in a 2.25 x 2.25 m jacuzzi. The whole is complemented by technical rooms, employee rooms and locker rooms, as well as a fitness zone with a sauna and a gym.
