Town Square

Town Square reimagines the “Plaça Onze de Setembre” in Santa Eulàlia de Ronçana, Spain, as a green oasis built around dense vegetation, a relaxed gathering ground, and a small sweet kiosk with a strong personality. Designed by Jordi Barri Segon together with Albert Nogueras Tarrero, Pauline Personeni, Miriam Del Castillo Soler, and Xavier Zanuy Justribó, with a design team of Genís Garcia Borràs and Simon Oudiette, the proposal renews the old plaza’s identity and turns it into “A Place” where neighbors can meet, simply be, and enjoy.

The main strategy introduces a new dense canopy that promotes the space as a green oasis in the middle of the urban fabric, giving future visitors the feeling of standing within a forest. This green mass conceals the different programmatic areas and shapes the plaza itself. It generates infiltration areas that act as active rainwater managers, and it casts a broad fresh shade across the plaza and the children’s areas to prevent overheating.

A public square that works as shared infrastructure

A town square has always been more than open ground between buildings. As a civic public space, it carries the everyday rituals of a community, from chance encounters to organized gatherings, and its design is judged by how comfortably people choose to linger. The challenge for any contemporary plaza is to stay open and legible while still offering shade, seating, and a sense of enclosure that makes people feel held rather than exposed.

The choice to lead with planting reflects a wider shift in how cities treat hard public space. Tree canopy and permeable ground help cool the surface, slow stormwater, and support urban green space that benefits residents and local wildlife alike. By framing the square as part green refuge and part civic stage, the design lets the same ground host markets, fairs, and music concerts without losing its calm everyday character.

The plaza is completed by a little, simply shaped kiosk with a playful identity. This tiny construction hosts a local sweet business and also creates a recognizable focal point for everyone who crosses the square. Set within the broader fabric of Catalonia, Town Square shows how a modest budget of trees, shade, and one well-placed building can give a small town a public room worth returning to.