Memory and Identity: The Conversion of the Macridescu Houses into a County Library

Authors’ Comment

The project proposes the adaptive reuse of the Macridescu Houses, historic monuments currently in an advanced state of degradation, into a county library for the city of Focșani. The intervention stems from the need to reactivate an abandoned site within the historic centre and from its potential to become a new cultural landmark at the urban scale.
The library function responds to an existing need within the city, where cultural and educational infrastructure is insufficient, while the current library is undersized and fragmented across several separate buildings. Therefore, the project proposes a unified, accessible, and representative public space, intended for the general public, as well as for young people, pupils, students, and the local community.
The intervention aims to restore the historic houses, clarify the spatial relationships within the site, and introduce a new volume in the background. The contemporary extension is positioned so as not to compete with the monuments, but rather to enhance their presence, functioning as an architectural backdrop and as a boundary between the historic ensemble and the neighbouring socialist apartment blocks. In this way, the project seeks to establish a balanced relationship between old and new, between the memory of the place and the current needs of the city.
The courtyards play an essential role in the organization of the ensemble, being treated as spaces of connection, orientation, and contemplation. They mediate the relationship between the city, the monument, and the new library, offering intermediate spaces for gathering, access, and a closer engagement with heritage. Thus, the site is opened towards the community and reintegrated into the public life of the city.
From a functional perspective, the library is organized gradually, from active and dynamic functions in the basement towards reading, study, and quiet areas on the upper floors. This hierarchy supports both the diversity of the cultural programme and the contemplative character of the library as a space dedicated to knowledge.
Through this intervention, the project seeks to transform abandoned heritage into an active cultural landmark, capable of supporting education, the memory of the place, and the public life of the city of Focșani.