SOM-designed ‘vertical village’ is Thailand’s largest private-sector development ever
By David Malone, Associate Editor
A mixed-use ‘vertical village’ is set to rise adjacent to Bangkok’s Lumphini Park and form a new center of social life in the city.
The SOM-led development will cover 16 hectares in the heart of Bangkok and include residential, hotel, retail, office, and public spaces. Half of the 16-hectare site will be used for public plazas and landscaped green space. When complete in 2025, One Bangkok is expected to accommodate 60,000 people on a daily basis.
The vertical village concept is meant to foster community and promote wellbeing in a dense urban environment. “Inside and out, places for collaboration, socializing, and relaxation cultivate community in a vertical environment,” SOM Design Partner Scott Duncan says of the project on SOM’s website.
Rendering courtesy of Atchain.
In addition to being the largest private-sector development ever undertaken in Thailand, One Bangkok is also the first project in the country to target LEED Platinum certification for neighborhood development. The large amount of green space and the use of permeable materials will retain rainwater on-site to reduce runoff and facilitate absorption to help replenish groundwater resources. Additionally, the One Bangkok master plan centralizes energy management systems to optimize efficiency and to anticipate future growth.
The One Bangkok design team, which, in addition to SOM, includes multiple local and international architecture and landscape architecture firms, is collaborating to design a unique selection of towers in the district. Currently, one tower will be graced with cascading green terraces while another will comprise two volumes joined by a lattice of sky gardens and atria.
TCC Assets (Thailand) Company Limited and Frasers Centrepoint Limited are developing the project.
