Ester Carro completes A Casa do Wallece, CASACOR’s 1st house project

With the delivery services he makes by bike, motorcycle courier Wallece Souza managed to save R$9,000 and buy a 7 m² shack in Jardim Colombo , a favela located in the Paraisópolis complex. But before architect Ester Carro began the renovation project, Wallece's house had no bathroom, kitchen or laundry area: “I didn't have what I needed to maintain hygiene, or a place to cook. I had nowhere to take a shower after a long day of work,” he says. Wallece and Ester have known each other for a long time. They both studied together at school, however, financial difficulties prevented the delivery boy from finishing his studies. He was then forced to live on the streets by his stepfather, who did not allow Wallece to be inside the house, not even to take a shower or eat. To survive, Wallace started making deliveries by bike for a delivery app. Working 12 hours a day throughout the week was the only way for the delivery man to save up enough money to buy a house — even though it lacked basic infrastructure. Wallece bought the house from his neighbor, who used it as a storage room. The precarious structure of the house led the delivery man to look for Ester at Fazendinhando , a social architecture organization that has been a partner of CASACOR since 2019. “I wanted a little dignity so I could finish my studies, pursue my goals and focus on my biggest goal, which is to help my family,” says Wallece. Architect and activist Ester Carro embraced her colleague's request and made A Casa do Wallece the 70th environment of CASACOR São Paulo 2024 and CASACOR 's first housing project in the favela. “In addition to showing the possibilities that architecture can bring to the favela , Wallece's story will inspire thousands of young people to continue fighting for their dreams,” says Ester.

Wallace's new house

Previously, Wallece lived in a 7.30 m² room: the bathroom was improvised, there was no shower and no plumbing. Leaks in the walls made it a risk for cockroaches to get in and caused thermal discomfort on cold and rainy days. At the end of the house, Ester built the long-awaited bathroom: “I just wanted a place to take a shower and have some privacy. Now, it's like I won the lottery,” Wallece celebrates. But to make it possible to build an equipped bathroom, Ester needed to expand the space, which now totals 10.50 m² . The first solution was to think of a wooden mezzanine on the upper part to increase the space below, explains Ester: “We had a tiny space that could not be expanded horizontally, but could be expanded vertically, so we expanded it by an additional 1.20 m²”.

The equipment in the house was provided through donations . The sink, the tank, the seat, the faucets and the soap dish were all donated by Deca , Duratex donated the carpentry for the space, Tintas Coral provided the paints, the Beer Center and the Vitroceramic Domino are from the Elettromec Group , the flooring was donated by Portinari , Sleep Solution provided the mattresses, Eternit provided the tiles for the project and, finally, Rennove participated in the work as a partner construction company. The artist who created the two works of art made for the space is the artist Júlio Jesus , a resident of Jardim Colombo and founder of Studio Desenrole, an art gallery in the community.

Housing in the favela

In Ester's words, the boldness of including a favela home in CASACOR is the result of the architect's efforts and the work carried out at Fazendinhando in "fighting for dignity for the peripheral population". In addition to recovering abandoned areas, the institute offers training courses in civil construction for women in the community and renovates homes in the neighborhood. Since 2020, the institution has had the support of CASACOR São Paulo , which provides inputs for the implementation of these actions, such as materials and objects left over from previous editions. “Walcece’s story is no exception. This is the situation of many delivery men and motorcycle couriers in São Paulo, young people who have not had access to education and who are struggling in their daily lives. Many live in places without any technical support. The architecture we learn in college ends up being very far from this reality, and a well-planned layout can improve physical and mental health in the outskirts of towns,” says Ester.

Guided tours

Casa do Wallece is included in the CASACOR São Paulo 2024 circuit and will be open for visits on the next two Fridays in July (July 19th and July 26th). Tours are guided, starting at Conjunto Nacional at 9am and lasting 1h30. After the tour ends, visitors can return to Conjunto Nacional and continue the CASACOR tour as normal, until 2pm, upon presentation of their ticket. Schedule your visit through the CASACOR app . See all the photos of A Casa do Wallece, the 70th room at CASACOR São Paulo 2024 :