The Social Service of Commerce – SESC – is known for its network of culture and sports centers at the national level. It is a successful model of equipment for collective use from the point of view of the quality of the programs and the Architecture they always present.

According to institutional information, "The action of SESC – Social Service of Commerce – is the result of a solid cultural and educational project that has brought, since its creation by the commerce and services business community in 1946, the mark of innovation and social transformation. Over the years, SESC innovated by introducing new models of cultural action and sublimated, in the 1980s, education as a prerequisite for social transformation. The achievement of this purpose was due to an intense performance in the field of culture and its different manifestations, aimed at all audiences, in different age groups and social strata. 'This does not only mean offering a great diversity of events, but effectively contributing to more lasting and meaningful experiences'."
The innovation and social transformation materialized in architectural ensembles of multiple functions require a singular formal expression, at the same time inviting to the SESC attendee – who enjoys a rich program of activities – and, due to its large dimensions in the face of these programs, in its quality as a building that qualifies the urban environment in which it is implanted, that is, as an inevitably monumental reference in the city and as a public space of great significance.
The site proposed for this SESC, located on an important avenue in the city of Franca and attached to an equally important sports facility, offers the correct urban condition for a project with such characteristics:
– The large perimeter of the land next to Avenida Dr. Ismael Alonso, which suggests a large access façade, expressing itself through the theater and the volume that houses the cultural sector with activities such as a library, restaurant, exhibition areas, etc.
– A topography that suggests the division of the program into two main levels as the best response to the use of the land and optimization of the earth movement.
The architectural party, therefore, establishes a low strip (elevation 102 next to Avenida Dr. Ismael Alonso) in which the cultural program is distributed, and a high strip (elevation 106 next to the border with the stadium) in which the sports and recreational program is distributed.
Along these two parallel tracks, the elements of the program are distributed, so that a central space is also produced between the tracks – to which all the elements of the program connect and with which they relate – and which becomes the living space, the main space of SESC. It is a meeting space and a space for being. Without a defined program, it welcomes the free use of the frequenter, in its benches, stairs, ramps and multiple areas of permanence.
From Av. Dr. Ismael Alonso, an entrance plaza provides an access ramp to this space, keeping access to the theater independent.
Still on the architectural side, with regard to the formal and functional solution, the design of a single roof that houses all the autonomous volumes that make up the elements of the program stands out. This roof of refined design is presented through large spans and generous cantilevers on its periphery, in order to provide generous eaves for the protection of the facades. Its construction in metal structure and cladding lends itself easily to these tasks, in addition to giving the architectural ensemble integrated by it an aspect of unity and great expressiveness.
Also noteworthy, as a singular and striking aspect of the project, is the positioning of the Theater – Stage – Covered Gymnasium set on the main corner, that is, Av. Dr. Ismael Alonso with Rio Grande do Sul street, in a configuration of perfect integration of uses, so that the stage box, located between the theater audience and the covered gymnasium that has bleachers on its perimeter, allows the performance of shows on both sides, isolated or simultaneously.