Tops is a 1980s lookout in the mountains of Cebu, Philippines, named such because it is located at one of the highest elevations in the city. It is blessed with an unmatched bird’s eye view of a vast urban scape with a backdrop of the beauty of a tropical archipelago. It is one of the locality’s top tourist destinations.
The redevelopment project involves the creation of dining, commercial, and entertainment spaces to revitalize the current lookout function. Instead of destroying the existing structure, the architects decided to build around it. The old curved stone divider walls that formerly supported a torus-shaped roof was preserved together with the hexagonal pavement pattern of the main viewing deck. The new three-story building embraces the old lookout and the viewing deck is extended to create a more expansive open space for the appreciation of the site’s most valuable asset - the views.
By leveraging the site's context to highlight its assets and incorporating the positive qualities of the old structures, the proposed development demonstrates an innovative design solution that enhances the site's overall appeal. The preservation of architectural elements from the old structures adds to the emotional resonance of the design, particularly among locals who take pride in their heritage – in this case, the city itself which is viewed from the development. The design also retains the nostalgia that old-time visitors have for Tops.
Highlighting the site's assets
The new building is a steel and concrete structure clad by aluminum louver bands that act as a ventilated façade element and a sunshade for the interior commercial spaces. These bands will also serve as the building’s distinguishable architectural element that “resonates” throughout the whole structure. The use of brown hues is typical of modern vernacular Filipino architecture. The color blends well with the development's green natural environs and the preserved old architectural elements.
Visitors of the new Tops alight in an open circular drop-off area directly connected to the development’s main entrance – a parabolic concrete structure clad with locally sourced stones. The architects wanted a tunnel configuration for the entry to intentionally provide a “shock and awe” transition from the arrival to the main viewing deck. From a semi-enclosed space, visitors get to peek at the viewing deck framed by the old stone divider walls. After a brief walk, the space abruptly shifts to an expansive viewing deck open to the sky. From the center of the circular platform, two artistically designed stair constructions border the city view. These sculptural stairs add to the uniqueness of the place and invite visitors to go up to the upper floors to have more appreciation of the views. These end-to-end access stairs also allow freedom for visitors to roam around the development along the development’s commercial establishments.
