In the face of the rapid urbanization in Taiwan, the eco-housing residential building 'The Urban Mountain' by Banmu Tang Environmental Integration Group advocates restoring the natural landscape in an urban built environment. This project's starting point is to plant trees on every balcony to vertically from a green skin of three high-rise apartments. High-density vertical greening technology creates a living environment suitable for both humans and ecology. This approach not only shields heat from outside but also forms a wildlife corridor via tree canopies. The overall landscape is intended to bridge the gap between human living space and natural scenes. The landscape designers started with field-study trips within Hsinchu County, obtaining relevant knowledge about flora and fauna. It helps the designer find ways to create a natural rural landscape in an urban built environment with an ethos native to the said areas.

The Urban Mountain, located conveniently in Hsinchu's high-speed rail zone, is emulating the features of Li-Tou Mountain: its landscape, ecology, botany, and way of life have inspired the concept of this architecture greatly. The Urban Mountain III has a 260% greening coverage rate, including edible plants that allow us to appreciate the process of collecting, harvesting, and experiencing life to its purest. The solar term canteen equipped with a kiln and a stove provides a shared space for locals to gather and be in the moment. After a hearty meal, you have various options: amble home with stairs that cover in greens and train in a gym that offers cardio and strength training equipment. You may also meditate/do yoga in our multipurpose room with the most relaxing symphony created by our mother nature. To the top, our tearoom is constructed of wood and mud. Its design keeps the airflow that carries the scent of the wood, gently breezes over your skin, and eventually finds inner peace. Sunrises and sunsets can be luxurious but distanced for urban hustlers. Luckily, The Urban Mountain provides us the path to the Arcadia.

The choice of plants is crucial to this eco-housing project. In addition to a variety of native plant species that are thought to be more adaptive to the local climate, The Urban Mountain III selects many edible plants with ethnobotanical values. It paves the way for the future urban foraging that will happen here. Residents can collect fruits, herbs, and flowers within their home landscape and, by doing so, retrieve the long-forgotten wisdom of identifying and feeding on native plants. Many edible trees border the landscape. This is reckoned as a friendly but straightforward gesture to inviting passengers on the sidewalk to taste seasonal fruits. The landscape center is a dining hall, equipped with a wood-fired masonry oven, a permaculture farm, and circulating trails to suggest an urban/rural lifestyle.

The Urban Mountain has many healthy designs that are invisible but hidden in details. The green structure of the architecture and the balcony at the aerial courtyard have allowed us to intake fresh air with their advanced air circulation design. With an average total of three rooms, every indoor wall used is non-toxic and formaldehyde-free. A red mud wall in the room is a natural, non-toxic building material and can absorb dampness from the air with a high-performance constant temperature. It is an ancient and advanced healthy material. The wooden floor connects your body with nature and essential enjoyment. The Urban Mountain dedicates to offer the best hideouts that indulge people in staying true to their voice by using sunlight, breeze, and greens to help people restore their health and humanity gradually.

*This stunning apartment is one of only 10 units available in The Urban Mountain III.

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