They plan to build a building – bridge that will link Villa 31 to La Recoleta – 20/07/2018

Villa 31 undergoes a process of transformation that adds, today, a new stage: The announcement of the construction of the largest seat in Latin America and the Caribbean of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

The project is from the Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena and will have 3,800 square meters of office space. In addition, on its roof will have a pedestrian bridge that will connect the neighborhood with Thays Park, the Exhibition Center and Congress, and the station of the Faculty of Law of the underground line H. Due to its particular architecture, it will generate 6,000 square meters of green space and allow pbaders-by to gain about an hour of travel.

This is the result of a proposal that was thought from the outset with a dual function: IDB offices and better circulation for the city's residents. City. The structure will have three points of support spread in different areas: to the west, between the exhibition center and the Illia motorway (access from Recoleta); to the east, next to the Scholas building (access from Barrio 31); and next to Padre Mugica Street, which corresponds to access to roads and transportation. Pedestrian access, on both sides of the building, will have escalators and elevators.

During the presentation of the project, Rodríguez Larreta explained that this building is part of a comprehensive plan to integrate urbanization in the city. He said that he is satisfied with "this bridge idea because it symbolizes the spirit of what we want to do with the integration of the villas", adding: "Today is the only way to do this. we are taking a small step closer to a dream that is starting to come true ". The manager explained that the work will begin in January 2019 and that it will be inaugurated in two years.

"It is obvious that for the people of the neighborhood the city is a source of opportunities", explained, for its part, the architect Aravena. "On the other hand, it was less obvious that the neighborhood is a source of opportunities for the city, and this project is part of the uprising we want to do in this regard."

Finance Minister Nicolás Dujovne provided data on the importance of the agency in the local economy: "Today, the IDB is helping us a lot with twice disbursements of 2015, with four times more project approvals than we had, all related to social rate and integration, as the Progresar plan. "

The construction of the building will generate more than 1,000 jobs during its construction period and, once more than 500 people have finished, between maintenance and equipment, they will come to work in the neighborhood.