05 Apr Popular Campus progress grabs the attention of El Nuevo Día

El Nuevo Dia recently featured an in-depth look at the progress of the innovative Popular Campus. Our own President & Managing Principal, Ilia Rios, was interviewed along with Popular’s Project Manager, Juan C. De Jesus, about how the project has successfully continued to advance despite the challenges of inflation and the lack of qualified personnel on the island.

This bold construction initiative goes beyond expanding the current operational offices of Banco Popular but also will include what will be called Popular Lab, a dedicated space for college students from the neighboring universities to come together and study and collaborate. There will also be a 120-room hotel with guest amenities and bright public areas for the general community to enjoy. “We hope it will become the new center of Hato Rey: with restaurants, space for shops and cafes that are complemented by the Fine Arts Cinema and 250,000 square feet of office space,” De Jesús projects.

“We hope it will become the new center of Hato Rey…”

With this project, there is a keen appreciation for being seismic-conscious in the design process. Our firm, which conceptualized and oversees the development of Popular Campus, explained to the publication that specific soil studies were commissioned for each lot where the new structures would be built. “Seismic design really comes out of the ground,” comments Ríos.  

In addition to the structural elements meeting and exceeding the requirements, Ríos indicated that the design included “shear walls or setback walls, which give the structure more rigidity, and can be complex to locate where they do not disturb.”

Despite not being immune to construction challenges, including inflation, PRISA Group, the General Contractor, our design firm, and our client, we are being proactive, conservative, and optimistic. That is why we continue to steamroll ahead with project completion scheduled for 2027.

We are delighted to be part of what will become a new creative hub and landmark project. V Architecture continues to be committed to impacting our local community with intelligent and purposeful design. Enjoy the entire article here.