Many people don’t know this, but in addition to being an architect, I was also a real estate developer. I started with a house and ended up building apartment towers.
I had to do what my clients do today: Design, Marketing, Bank Financing, Construction, Permits, and Paperwork.
And yes, I made mistakes at every stage. That’s why I know how stressful and complex it is to take a development to the final delivery of units. That experience helped set me apart from most architects.
For this month’s blog, I wanted to share with you the process behind the development of Piedra.
Piedra is a vertical housing building that, from its conception, aimed to evoke a polished geometry that channels the flow of energy between the earth and the sky. The choice of a reflective glass façade was key to achieving this intention, as it actively responds to its context—reflecting its surroundings and transforming throughout the day. This makes the building a living element, in constant dialogue with its environment.
The residential project was designed to offer a unique experience for each resident, with the goal that every apartment would have its own identity. That’s why the 30 units that make up the complex are all different: they vary in size, shape, location within the building, and in their specific features. This level of customization is intended to appeal to users who value authenticity and tailor-made design.
Piedra Tower by Cafeína Design
From the start, our target buyers were mainly young professionals looking to settle in Cholula. Therefore, one of the project’s core principles was to foster an integrated community—where neighbors wouldn’t just cohabit, but could also connect, collaborate, and even engage in shared creative processes. To make this possible, we arranged the towers around a shared urban orchard, conceived as a living space where residents could grow food, build relationships, and take ownership of the space in their daily lives.
The architectural program consists of three towers placed in parallel, forming a perimeter that frames the central garden. Each tower was designed as an independent volume, yet in constant dialogue with its neighboring buildings—as if trying to touch, but never quite succeeding. This layout creates an architectural language that emphasizes the individuality of each tower while also integrating them as part of a broader, cohesive system.
