Description

Urban context

Just north of the railway line in District 3 of Zurich, there is a long,
six-story block of buildings organized around three atriums. The property was
formerly an office and commercial complex but has now been partially converted
into housing.

Ground-floor zone

Hard paved surfaces surround the building complex. Recessed lobbies offer access
to the various wings of the building from Eichstrasse. The ground floor is
designed as a plinth. The large, deep commercial units receive natural light
from the facade and light domes.

Building structure

The hybrid use building houses not only stores and offices but also twenty-nine
loft apartments ranging from 80 to 192 square meters. The residential floors,
which begin with the third floor, are accessed via interior vertical
point-access stairwells, which receive natural light from light wells. The
introverted units provide open, freely divisible living space, which gives
residents lots of latitude to create an individual lifestyle. Several of the
apartments are designed as penthouse apartments with private roof terraces. To
compensate for the other units’ lack of private open spaces, roof terraces are
offered for rent.

Facade

The exterior continuous ribbon windows of the original building were replaced for
residential use by large-format French windows, which offer a view of an urban
panorama over the sea of tracks. The inner courtyards are designed as
inaccessible visual oases with greenery.

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Originally published in: Ulrike Wietzorrek, Housing+: On Thresholds, Transitions, and Transparencies, Birkhäuser, 2014.