Single tower stacks houses “like a puzzle” and forms a vertical village

The innovative Puzzle Tirana project is part of a global initiative by the Albanian capital to renew the landscape and overcome its Soviet-era heritage.

The Puzzle Tirana tower, a stunning collaboration between Network of Architecture (NOA) and Atelier4, is set to redefine Tirana’s skyline with its bold design and unique concept.

Designed as a vertical village, the tower stands out for its abstract facade, similar to a puzzlecomposed of stacked house shapes that vary in orientation, size and openings.

Standing 71 meters high in the Albanian capital, Puzzle Tirana reflects the city’s ongoing construction boom, which seeks to modernize its architectural identity and overcome Soviet-era aesthetics. Large global companies, including MVRDV, BIG and OODA, are also contributing to this urban transformation.

The tower’s design takes inspiration from NOA’s whimsical Hub of Huts, adopting a mix of rural and urban influences. The structure features a large void between the 8th and 11th floors, shaped like a rotating house, creating an open terrace area. This space will also integrate vegetation, including a rooftop garden, reinforcing the building’s connection with nature.

“Houses work like pieces of a puzzle”, explains NOA founder Lukas Rungger. “They fit together, rotating until they “click” in the structure. Our design portrays the clash between rural and urban life, mixing an extremely rational core with a facade characterized by a dynamic and apparent chaos, where each piece is in its place.”

Inside, the tower will house several features. Commercial spaces will occupy the lower floors, while a combination of hotel accommodation and apartments will dominate the upper floors. From the 7th to the 16th floor, only residential apartments are planned, culminating in three luxurious penthouse suites at the top, reports the .

The project has already received preliminary approval and NOA is optimistic that construction will begin soon. Once completed, Puzzle Tirana will not only serve as a mixed-use functional spacebut also as an architectural statement, symbolizing Tirana’s ambition to embrace innovative urban design while simultaneously honoring its cultural roots.