Cascade Commercial Center
Location: Zagreb, Croatia
Type: Invited competition / 1st prize
Author: Radionica arhitekture
Design team: Blanka Gutschy, Vedrana Ivanda, Kristina Jeren, Goran Rako, Nenad Ravnić, Josip Sabolić, Marusja Tus
Structure: Radionica statike d.o.o.
Services: Arhingtrade d.o.o., KGH d.o.o.
Designed: 2004 - 2008
Completed: 2009
Contractor: Ing-Grad d.o.o.
Client: Molteh d.o.o.
Area: 18.000 m2
Photo: Boris Cvjetanović


Cascade Commercial Center is situated in the center of Zagreb, about 500m to the north of the main city square where the flat lowland part of Zagreb meets the elite housing covered city hills. The architectural concept of the building is contextual as it appreciates the topography which suggests building terraces between two parallel streets each on a different elevation.
As you walk along The Tkalčićeva street, one of the important streets of Zagreb, the section of the building ensures visual contact with four streets / terraces of the center. They are filled with people sitting in cafes, people shopping or just window shopping. If you approach the center from the south, from the Mikloušićeva Street, streets / terraces also let you just walk through the Cascade and continue to the north, to another Shopping center.
The private streets / terraces become a part of the public city space.
The facades of the terraces are defined by the shop windows. The shops are entered either directly from the terrace on one side or over a small bridge crossing on the other. The terraces are spacious enough for both communication and use as an extension of the shops / cafes. The last two terraces are covered with a translucent roof. The east part of the center is reserved for four apartments looking to the gardens of the residential street to the east of the center.