The subject of this thesis project is a public building in the city center of Volos, which aims to host activities related to architecture, the city itself and its residents.

Trigger for this choice was the research about participative design as theory and practice, both during its first appearance in the late 50s, as well as in its modern aspects in the global community. The initial aim of this thesis is not the building itself, but the creation of all the sufficient conditions, which would allow to the residents of the city to actively participate into the shaping of their built environment.

The building is located in the center of the city of Volos, between two other important public buildings, the university library and the church of Metamorphosis, which create a dipole of public action. The intention of the design is the building to perform as a public space for meeting and interchanging as regards as architecture, public built space and generally every aspect of everyday life in the urban space.   The spaces are not designed for a specific action, determined from scratch, but offer all the necessary conditions and facilities for meeting, discussing, designing, constructing, presenting and storing. The central staircase is an essential part of the design. It lifts the public action from the streets, pedestrians and the square to the upper levers. Essentially, this project is about a public space developed in levels, ready to accept any kind of use its users would like to give it, beyond any design intention or even imagination. The final objective of this thesis is not only the building itself, but also the whole system of knowledge, contacts, ideas and more that would occur by the hosted actions.