The building, designed by MID estudio + FILO arquitectos, occupies the entire footprint of a plot that is roughly square but truncated on one side. The spatial layout establishes a sequence between areas dedicated to the rangers' fieldwork and those linked to administrative tasks, while also incorporating a multi-purpose room for training and activities involving organizations related to forest management. Externally, setbacks in the east and south facades create entry porches and parking areas.
The design employs a restrained material palette in which wood plays a leading role, both structurally and spatially. The timber structure is expressed in the porticoed facades and remains visible beneath the roof in the interior; meanwhile, the north and west walls are clad in dark green textured wood panels, and the roof and skylight are finished with grey corrugated metal sheeting.
Sakana-Mendialdea Forest Resources Center by MID estudio + FILO arquitectos. Photograph by María Azkarate.
Project description by MID estudio + FILO
The new Forest Resources Center, which also serves as the headquarters for the Forest Rangers of the Sakana-Mendialdea district, is located in an industrial park on the outskirts of Irurtzun in Navarre, Spain.
The plot, roughly square in shape but truncated on one side, is fully occupied to meet the functional requirements of the project.
A single three-pitched roof made of timber, whose gable is expressed by the break in the west façade, is the primary gesture sheltering the various interior spaces. This generates a single-story volume, modest in scale compared to the surrounding industrial buildings.
From the intersection of the three roof planes rises a lantern structure that allows natural light to enter the interior and introduces a vertical tension to the space.
The roof and lantern, clad in corrugated grey metal, establish a visual connection with the neighboring industrial buildings.
The north and west façades, facing the access roads to the industrial park, are deliberately protective and closed in character. They follow a strict modular rhythm, only broken by the free placement of windows on the west side. Textured dark green wooden panels cover these façades, harmonizing with the surrounding mountains.
In contrast, the east and south façades are porticoed, revealing the rhythm of the timber structure. Setback façade define sheltered entrances as well as the building’s parking areas.
A sculpture by artist Javier Poveda occupies the entrance porch, evoking the work of forest rangers through the symbolic restoration and reconstruction of an oak tree.
Inside, the spaces are arranged to follow the natural sequence from areas dedicated to fieldwork to those for administrative tasks. The program also includes a room suitable for training sessions and for meetings with organizations involved in forest management.
Following straightforward construction principles, the design relies on a restrained material palette, with timber playing a central role.
Firewood sourced from the local valleys is used for heating, managed by the rangers themselves, supplemented with other sustainable systems appropriate for a building of this type.
The single timber roof, exposed from within, ultimately defines the character of the interior, embracing the natural tension between its structural logic and the functional layout of the plan.
