Exploring Plattenbau

or
Representation and Perception-Levels of Slab Housing Districts

Brno :
Blackplan, political border,
highlighted slab housing districts
and tramway lines

1km 5km 10km

 fertility rate
2
80 years

expectancy of life
1
70 years

dwellings
130%
120%
110%
total population

1960 1970 1980 1990 2000

sever privatisation for tenants

lesna privatisation for bigger investors
bystrc I renovation
family houses

bystrc II, bohunice, líšeň 100m2

average floor area per dwelling
multi dwelling buildings
40m2
PANEL program
support to elimination of dilapidation of prefab housing facilities,
including support to repairs, rehabilitation and refurbishment of
apartment buildings built by the prefab technology
brick

FORM OF SUPPORT subsidized interest on negotiated long-term

loans; bank guaranty for loans up to 70 % of outstanding principal
brick

APPLIES TO loans provided for repairs, rehabilitation and refurbish-

ment of prefab apartment buildings
APPLICANT owner or co-owner of a prefab apartment building
panel

(natural person or legal entity)

panel

TERMS AND CONDITIONS stipulated by government

WHERE TO APPLY state housing development fund ("shdf")

condo

tenement
1040 panel

dwellings
houses

22444
27919

collective
2667

History of slab housing in the CSSR/Czech Republic from 1960 until now, specifications about Brno,
general information within the European context
The considerations of the
Bohunice
masterplans
All of those districts in Brno have similar at-
tributes. The first masterplans were only con-
centrated on the building structure and not
on the surroundings and facilities. No tree was
planted additionaly, only inevitable paths
and streets which were built. The question of
shopping and recreation was too small in the
communism to be discussed.

After the political changes the logical step was

to improve this situation. All blocks should be
renovated until 2010, new supermarkets and
stores are already open and everywhere is
also new housing present, a sign for the qual-
ity that is seen there by the inhabitants.

The Czech govermenent is offering with the

“Panel-Program” a funding system for the ren-
ovation of slab housing after the privatisation.
There is a visible prioritization of the housing Lesna
structure. The city is offering better conditions
for transport. The pavement is improved, new
trams and busses are provided. But there is a
visible lack of attention to the old facilities and
some of the green, but without an appointe-
ment. There are many empty places which
once have been children playgrounds, rec-
reation places, but also storage or company
buildings, which are now unused or empty.

The most important task to install infrastructure

which does not exist at the moment. It is not
easy to find a specific and individual charac-
ter of a district, when it was never build with
special considerations. The lack of cultural fa- Lisen
cilities and local events has its consequences
on the inhabitant structure.

Compared to structures like the olympic vil-

lages or housing districts powered by big
companies, there is always a big concen-
tration on emerging identity. The district has
its own logos, pictograms and signs. The fa-
cilities are working together, a radio and a
newspaper, now maybe a website, bring the
people together. The attraction of the place is
no more the annual installation of an amuse-
ment park, but more the place itself which
is already providing the same qualities and
choices as the inner city districts.

Bystrc

Housing structure of the four big slab housing districts of Brno

Lesna Bystrc Lesna Bystrc

lesna bystrc lesna bystrc

bystrc
no man's land allotment garden old village field forest water street slab housing

A visible division - urban fabric and functions

The footprints of Bystrc - paths of human scale

 Old and new paths of Lesna -
historical context and living
conditions emerging a logo.

Lesná
Lesna - Perception-Leves of different means of transport.
Lesná Circuit
Finding on places what we are expecting is a convenient method of visiting cities. Lesná is offering
secrets and sequences we don‘t expect.

According to game design-theory, the complete setting of the district of Lesná is splitted up into per-
ception-levels which are filtering the information and show Lesná with a specific focus. Those levels
exclude information which seems normally obvious and point out places that can be seen by an
aware observator.

The concept of shifting existing conditions into new compositions allows the visitor to explore the dis-
trict in a virtual, but still reality-connected way. The usual structure of a website is replaced by a game-
orientated possibility to play in the district and get informations about it.

The “Lesná Circuit” is defined by the hotspots and the transport-possibilities between them. Each node
is connected to the network. The pedestrain has to follow them step by step, the bus is limited in its
circulation, the tram offers the important connection to the inner city and the car is the analogy of the
teleporter, with the possibility of jumping between nodes, but limitated by borders.
act, area, board, chapter, course, episode, game, landscape, map, mission, phase, plan, round, section, stage, wave, world, zone

exploring plattenbau
public transport streets and cars topography buildings paths nature

tram foot bus car

urban exploration
...is the examination of the normally
unseen or off-limits parts of human
civilization. urban exploration is also
commonly referred to as "creeping"
or infiltration, although some people
consider infiltration to be more

moves
closely associated with the explora-
tion of active or inhabited sites.

finding on places what we are expecting

levels
is a convenient method of visiting cities.
lesná is offering secrets and sequences
we don‘t expect.

according to game design-theory, the

complete setting of the district of lesna is
splitted up into perception-levels which
are filtering the information and show
lesna with a specific focus. those levels
exclude information which seems nor-
mally obvious and point out places that
can be seen by an aware observator.

the concept of shifting existing conditions

into new compositions allows the visitor to
game

explore the district in a virtual, but still

reality-connected way. the usual struc-
ture of a website is replaced by a game-
orientated possibility to play in the district
and get informations about it.

the lesná circuit is defined by the hotspots

and the á transport-possibilities between
them. each node is connected to the net-
work. the pedestrain has to follow them
step by step, the bus is limited in its circu-
lation, the tram offers the important con-
nection to the inner city and the car is the
analogy of the teleporter, with the possi-
bility of jumping between nodes, but limi-
tated by borders.

lesná circuit perception levels

it is sometimes a question of subjective paths which are leading

the right monitor resolution to intuitive ways of exploring

representation interaction zoom out orientation extension

official web presence of sever/lesná sim city on the map of the actual photos or short description of external link of the place
2008 1993 mean of transport the place if available

and finding more