The land is positioned in the south-west area of the city Cluj-Napoca between two main

neighborhoods of the city: Manastur and Zorilor.

There has been done a urban planning project for the area (approved in 2014). The proposal was
done on an area of 63.000 sqm and included the systematization of the road (a roundabout which gave
acces to the proprety; on the north side one commercial space (already built) and 6 residential buildings;
and on the south side a residential building “3S+P+M+14+1” (Wings); a kindergarden (the egg – it is
shown in some of the renderings) and a commercial space.

The area is way underdeveloped in comparison with the two neighborhoods, despite the fact that the
position in the city is excellent (it's less than 2 km from the city center). The reason for this, is the
geotechnical nature of the land. The geo study revealed the fact that the whole hill had to be supported
in order to be able to build on the site. The final project for supporting the soil around the site included
over 300 pilings around the proprety limit (going 10-20 meters deep) and another 100 (going 26 m deep)
under the building.

The purpose of the invesment was to influence the area by giving life to a zone which was considered
dead for many decades. The building will accommodate many people (450) in a good location which will
partially reduce the traffic of the city, because its proximity (walking distance) to different interest points
(commercial spaces, offices, kindergarden and the center of the neighborhood – Zorilor).

Fortunatly the developer has a vast experience in developing residential buildings and was very open
minded towards the design of the building, encouraging a design that might give a new breeze to the
architecture of the city. The developer also has an inclination towards green buildings, built only green
buildings since 2012 and is a member of România Green Building Council (RoGBC) since 2010. It was
a requirement from the investor that Wings was supposed to be green. The project already obtained the
pre-certification for Green Homes (RoGBC).

The design requirements from the developer were clear, so the design part of the project started with
developing a concept around all the given elements. Considering the fact that the area is underdeveloped
- there’s no building in the vicinity of the site, that meant there was no reference point to which to relate
the architecture of the building, except, of course the natural context (position on the hill, orientation,
relation to the proprety limits, etc).

So that meant almost complete freedom in the design of the building. All these facts lead to the final
concept of the building: a concept that had to mean something, that had to create a symbol not only for
the area, but for the city (it will be extremely visible from many points of the city – because of the height
(53 m - going up from 445.9 m) and also integrate a pleasant architecture design. The answer to the
question of the concept came naturally: a symbol for a city at growth, the predominance of the height of
the natural context and the freedom of the design because of the empty vicinities: Wings!

The difficult part was to create a volumetric shape which respects all the urban parameters, has
optimal proportion, and creates a pleasant skyline from any of the immediate/far viewing points. After
months of drawing sketches, hundreds of shape studies and a constant coordination with the structural
engineer, the building finally took shape in the form of 6 curved lines that define the volumes of each
wing.
 The final project, authorized in 2018, which is being built right now (the first 3 underground stories
are already built) respects completely the original concept. It includes 228 aparments and 242 parking
spots. The apartments go from 40-190 sqm and can accommodate any requirements from clients: from
small studios to house-like apartments (duplex-two story apartments) and penthouses. All of them have
a good relation with the outside because all of them have big terraces (over 6000 sqm of balconies and
terraces), some of which with planters.

The main green elements of the building are: The main groundfloor terrace will have communal
areas, kids playground and private gardens for fruit and vegetables. The materials used in the building
have been chosen by the criteria of low toxicity of the Volatile Organic Compounds. The sanitary items
have low water flow and also efficient irrigation equipments and systems. The building will also provide
the infrastructure for sockets for high speed charging electrical cars. The finishing of the building had
materials with a high solar reflection index which reduces the effect of “heat island”. The garbage disposal
will be in 5 different fractions for selective collection of the waste.

All new concepts are initially controversial. In this case, at this stage, the project seems to be well
taken by the viewers. About how it's gonna be perceived as a building, that, only time will tell...