Sideway Apartment by Ashari Architects: Shiraz Mixed-Use Design Review

The Sideway Apartment, designed by Ashari Architects, is a mixed-use building at the western entrance to the city of Shiraz in Iran. It stretches along a main boulevard, with shops at ground level and apartments above. The project is a careful response to two problems that also face many buildings in Pakistan: how to make a building on a busy road work for both pedestrians and drivers, and how to control harsh western sun on the main facade. Its answer is a calm commercial base, a rhythmic facade of angled vertical fins, terraced balconies and side walls of hollow concrete modules. This review explains the design and what developers and architects in Pakistan can learn from it.

The Site: A Building Seen at Two Speeds

The site sits at a gateway to the city, along a main boulevard with elevated roads nearby. This means the building is experienced in two very different ways. Pedestrians pass close to the ground floor at walking pace, looking at shop fronts and entrances. Drivers on the elevated roads see the upper floors briefly, at speed, from a distance.

Ashari Architects made this dual view the core of the design. The base of the building is treated to work for people on foot, while the upper floors use a stronger, more graphic language that reads clearly from passing cars.

Design Concept: A Quiet Base and an Expressive Top

The commercial base

The architects wanted a visually balanced and unobtrusive base. The ground floor holds commercial units and is designed to blend smoothly with pedestrian movement and the life of the street. By keeping the base calm, the design reduces visual clutter at eye level and lets shop fronts and signage do their work.

The residential floors

Above the base, the upper floors take on a different character. A distinct design language separates them from the commercial levels, making it clear where public activity ends and private homes begin. This also gives residents more privacy from the street.

The Main Facade: Fins Against the Western Sun

The main facade faces the boulevard and receives strong western sunlight in the afternoon. Western sun is difficult to control because it comes in at a low angle, so horizontal shades are less effective than they are on a south face. Ashari Architects responded with vertical blades.

The terraces also play a climatic role. They create deep, shaded outdoor spaces in front of the apartments and set the glazing back from the facade line, reducing direct sun on windows.

The chamfered corner

One side of the building is chamfered, cut at an angle. The architects aligned this chamfer with the angle of the vertical blades, so that people approaching from that direction see a continuous, unified facade rather than an abrupt corner.

The Side Facades: Hollow Concrete Modules

Because the building can be seen from several directions, the architects wanted every facade to feel part of one design. The north-west and south-east facades face different light and privacy conditions, so they use a different system: square, hollow concrete modules.

• The modules can be used solid where privacy or sun protection is needed, or open where light and views are wanted.
• They can be extended in different directions to suit the size of each wall.
• Their square, framed texture stays simple, so the main facade remains the focal point.

This kind of modular screen is close in spirit to the jaali, the perforated screen used for centuries in South Asian and Persian architecture to filter light, provide privacy and allow air to move.

Facade Strategies Compared

Why the Design Works

• Climate drives form. The facade is shaped by sun angles, not just style, which reduces cooling demand.
• Clear separation of uses. Shops and homes each get the frontage and privacy they need.
• Consistent identity. The building reads as one design from every approach, despite using different facade systems.
• Simple, buildable elements. Repeated fins and concrete modules can be produced and installed efficiently.

Points to consider

Vertical fins and screens must be designed for wind loads and securely fixed, especially at height. They also collect dust in arid climates, so access for cleaning should be planned. Terraces need good waterproofing and drainage to avoid leaks into the apartments below.

Living Behind the Fins: The Resident’s View

Facade design is often judged from the street, but residents experience it from the inside. In a building like Sideway Apartment, the vertical blades and terraces shape daily life in several ways.

• Privacy. Angled fins limit direct views from the boulevard and from neighbouring buildings into living rooms, while still allowing residents to look out.
• Comfort. Shaded windows reduce afternoon overheating, which is often the hottest and most uncomfortable part of the day in west-facing flats.
• Usable outdoor space. Terraces protected by the facade can be used for sitting, drying clothes or plants, much like a traditional veranda.
• Noise. Depth in the facade and setback glazing can reduce some of the traffic noise reaching the rooms, although good windows remain essential on a main road.

These benefits matter for the long-term value of an apartment building. Flats that stay cooler, feel private and have usable balconies are easier to sell or rent than flats behind bare, sun-baked glass.

Maintenance planning

Owners’ associations should plan for regular cleaning of fins and screens, inspection of fixings and resealing of terrace waterproofing. Including safe access points, such as anchor points for rope access or reachable cleaning positions from terraces, makes maintenance easier and cheaper over the building’s life.

Lessons for Pakistan

Shiraz shares many conditions with Pakistani cities such as Lahore, Multan and Quetta: hot summers, strong sun, dust and a tradition of courtyard and screen architecture. Mixed-use buildings with shops below and flats above are also very common along Pakistan’s main roads. Sideway Apartment offers practical guidance.

In Lahore, mixed-use buildings must follow the bye-laws of the relevant authority, such as the Lahore Development Authority, including setbacks, height limits and parking requirements. Energy performance can be improved further by insulating walls and roofs and choosing efficient cooling, using guidance such as ASHRAE standards as a reference.

ACCO designs and builds mixed-use and residential buildings in Lahore. See our apartment building construction service, our model page on commercial plaza construction in Gulberg, and the commercial plaza cost guide, which explains how each project is priced through an itemised BOQ.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

The Sideway Apartment shows how a mixed-use building on a busy road can be shaped by its context and climate. A calm base for pedestrians, a rhythmic facade of angled fins for drivers, terraced balconies and modular concrete screens all work together to control sun and give the building a clear identity. For Pakistan’s growing number of roadside apartment and commercial buildings, these ideas offer a practical, climate-aware alternative to flat glass facades.