The Frame - Praia Da Poça / ARX Portugal

Architects: ARX Portugal
Co-authorship: Boost Studio
Area: 1,053.67 m²
Year: 2025
Photography: Ivo Tavares Studio
Lead Architects: Nuno Mateus, José Mateus, João Dantas
Developer: Inspire Capital
Builder: Engimov
Inspection: Gesconsult
Engineering: PCG Consulplano Viatunel Engenharia
Landscape Design: LandPlan
Acoustic Design: PCG Consulplano Viatunel Engenharia
Fluids & Thermal Engineering: PCG Consulplano Viatunel Engenharia
Materials: Rendered façades, natural stone, ceramic roof tiles, exposed concrete, zinc roofing
Client: Sophistication Planet, Lda.
Location: São João do Estoril
Country: Portugal

The Frame – Praia da Poça is a residential redevelopment in São João do Estoril that combines the restoration of a historically significant seaside residence with the addition of contemporary housing. Designed by ARX Portugal in collaboration with Boost Studio, the project transforms a coastal site of approximately 1,600 square meters into a four-unit residential complex while preserving the architectural identity of Casal São João Batista, a villa dating from 1921 and listed in the Municipal Architectural Heritage Inventory. The intervention restores the building’s exterior character while reorganizing its interior into two independent three-bedroom residences. A complementary contemporary volume introduces two semi-detached four-bedroom houses that respond to the scale and morphology of the surrounding neighborhood. Shared underground parking, storage, and technical facilities unify the development, allowing the landscaped exterior to prioritize pedestrian circulation, communal gardens, and a swimming pool overlooking the Estoril coastline. Through the careful integration of heritage conservation and contemporary residential design, the project strengthens the architectural continuity of one of Portugal’s most established seaside communities.

The frame – praia da poça / arx portugal

The Estoril coastline has long been defined by a collection of residential buildings that reflect successive periods of architectural development, making interventions within this context particularly sensitive. Rather than replicating historical forms or isolating the existing structure as a preserved artifact, The Frame – Praia da Poça establishes a measured relationship between restoration and new construction. The project treats the site’s architectural legacy as an active component of the development, allowing contemporary housing to coexist with a recognized heritage building while reinforcing the identity of the surrounding urban fabric.

Occupying an irregular plot bordered by Avenida Marginal, Avenida Marques Leal, and Rua Narcisa Sousa Graça, the development responds to both the site’s topography and the historical significance of Casal São João Batista. The original residence, vacant after years of neglect, undergoes a comprehensive rehabilitation that preserves its rendered façades, stone detailing, and ceramic roof while adapting its interior for contemporary living. The reconfigured layout accommodates two independent three-bedroom residences distributed across two principal floors with converted attic spaces, ensuring the building continues to serve a residential function without compromising its architectural character.

The western portion of the property introduces a contemporary volume containing two semi-detached four-bedroom houses. Their positioning and massing are informed by an analysis of the surrounding neighborhood, respecting established setbacks, building heights, and volumetric relationships while expressing a distinctly modern architectural language. Exposed concrete and zinc roofing clearly differentiate the new intervention from the restored villa, allowing each architectural period to retain its own identity without competing for visual prominence.

Below ground, the four residences are connected through a shared basement that accommodates private parking, storage rooms, and technical spaces. Concentrating these functions beneath the site frees the landscape above for communal use, creating a pedestrian-oriented environment complemented by gardens and a swimming pool positioned on the southern portion of the property. These outdoor spaces strengthen the relationship between the development and the nearby coastline while enhancing the quality of everyday residential life.

The Frame – Praia da Poça demonstrates how architectural heritage can become the foundation for carefully considered urban renewal rather than an obstacle to development. By preserving the defining qualities of an early twentieth-century seaside residence while introducing contemporary housing that responds to its context, ARX Portugal and Boost Studio deliver a project that balances historical continuity with present-day residential expectations. The result contributes to the ongoing evolution of the Estoril seafront through an architectural approach grounded in contextual sensitivity, material clarity, and long-term urban integration.