EL QUINTO SOL: Master Plan & Regenerative Territorial Strategy

Zempoala / Zinguilucán, Hidalgo (2025)

Project Narrative: El Quinto Sol is a Cultural, Agro-industrial, and Tourism Master Plan spanning 140 hectares in a strategic transition zone between industrial corridors and ancient archaeological sites. This project represents a shift from designing buildings to designing ecosystems, acting as a regenerative node that articulates ecology, community, and pre-Hispanic roots.

The strategy was born from a deep territorial diagnosis of oak forests and agricultural lands. Rather than imposing forms, the design "listens" to the landscape—its slopes, water flows, and biological corridors—to define low-impact development zones while preserving fragile areas for environmental education.

The Symbolic Framework: The master plan is organized around four symbolic axes—Water, Earth, Air, and Fire—which manifest as physical experiences:

Earth & Water: Agricultural terraces and artificial wetlands that integrate production with landscape restoration.

Air & Fire: Observatories, ceremonial forums, and open-air galleries that invite ritual and collective experiences.

Cultural Fabric: The program includes a Maguey Museum, craft workshops, and regenerative housing, all designed to activate local economies through low-impact tourism.

Architectural Impact: This project allowed me to expand my practice into the territorial scale, understanding architecture as a catalyst for relationships between tradition and modernity, and between intimate space and the collective landscape.

Professional Scope:

Master Planning & Urban Design: Zoning and infrastructure design for a 140-hectare site.

Architectural & Furniture Design: Creating the formal language for key cultural and hospitality structures.