Mondrian Seoul Itaewon Lodge / Gansam Architects & Associates

‘Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu’ is the to start with specific tourist zone selected in Seoul back in 1997. The army base in Yongsan utilised to be occupied by the Japanese Military until eventually the US Army took more than soon after the national liberation of Korea. Afterward, tiny stores and bars concentrating on American soldiers opened and the army camp city emerged, turning the place into an amusement district for US soldiers. The urbanization of the spot into a local community of American troopers and linked foreigners continued. Itaewon grew to become known to the globe after different global conferences and situations, which includes the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games, have been held in the 1980s. It turned into a vacationer attraction visited by tourists from all nations around the world including Japan. The former Money Resort, which opened in 1988, took this tourism demand from customers into account when it opened and involved various entertainment facilities, such as a nightclub, karaoke, and sauna. The 30 or additional several years had been long plenty of for calls for to grow for a wide range of alterations in the hotel’s small business construction and zoning program concerning the improvements that have taken put in the society of the Itaewon area, where the resort is found.

This venture supposed to rework the distinctive lodge room into a mixed retail + resort area. The areas in the basement for enjoyment services have been replaced with new systems that can draw synergy with a life style lodge. The MD was composed of packages this kind of as a life-style e book store, book cafe, craft beer house, and rooftop celebration pool to include the unique culture of Itaewon into the resort. Escalators were put in to improve the accessibility to the underground and the sunken house obtainable from current streets outside the house was expanded. Furthermore, the concrete roof was slash to put in the glass ceiling (Major Light-weight) for some underground areas to attract purely natural lighting down to the underground space.

The structure alternative for lowering the entry barrier as a lodge was concerned with how to cope with the key gate. The predecessor, Funds Lodge, had the key gate and canopy on the entrance facet like other accommodations. For the existing hotel, it was presumed that clients to the new retail suppliers would have a large psychological stress on accessibility if they experienced to go as a result of the hotel’s gate to achieve those shops located in the reduced tales. To eradicate the burden, the main gate and foyer space of the resort was moved from the 1st flooring to the next flooring relating to the attributes of the inclining land, and the principal gate and lobby house on the 1st flooring was opened to everybody to obtain conveniently by shifting the zoning and structure. The Fall-Off Zone, which was freshly built at the rear of the second flooring, is the new canopy created to go well with the new brand id of the resort.