Izmit Intergenerational Social Center

  • Project Date: 2021
  • Location: Izmit / Kocaeli
  • Client: Municipality of Izmit
  • Project Team: Tulin Hadi, Cem Ilhan, Su Kapkin, Aysegul Ersin, Sezin Beldag

Izmit Intergenerational Social Center (IKYM), located in Gündoğdu neighborhood is  one of the newly developing settlements of Izmit, with its unique model. The content of the model was determined by a participatory workshop held by the stakeholders who will use the center. The spaces that children and older people will use at the same time have a flexible plan, including activities which will encourage intergenerational interaction.

In the project, access and inclusiveness are emphasized on the basis of a free programme, open to external participation and cooperation with different institutions for both age groups. The sections/units in the interior and the sections in the exterior are combined under the theme of “sustainability” to form an integrity/continuity. The workshops created indoors and outdoors will come to life with their own philosophies and ways of working related to sustainability. Venues, programs and trainers together are the key elements of the project. Unlike other models, IKYM aims to provide “inclusivity”, which is the most emphasized theme in the workshop, with its structure and operation open to not only a group of children and a group of elderly people, but also all children in the region, the elderly with the participation of parents, young people and all age groups.

The main theme of the designed center is “sustainability”. The spaces in the center are predominantly determined to be directly related to this theme. Indoors, creative recycling area, sustainable art studio, seniors club where seniors come together chat and play. A rich life consisting of areas reserved for purposeful use and an open kitchen has been designed. There are urban gardening areas, themed floor games, open workshops, outdoor dining terrace, festival and mini concert terraces, which will also create continuity with the interior spaces.

This intense program has been melted into the topography by taking advantage of the steep slope of the land. Thus, it helped to create a neighborhood park at the upper level, which is lacking in the area. The ramp starting from the top level surrounds the building, providing access to the spaces on the lower levels and forming a continuous pedestrian promenade that connects to the street at the lower level.