Studio Gugger | Siedlung Affoltern

Landscape

The city of Zurich has a significant history of social housing construction. Along with this architectural and social history, this housing tradition has always been a reflection of the prevailing social conditions and - with regard to the design of the immediate open spaces - of the prevailing understanding of nature.
In the north of Zurich in particular, housing estates were built by taking the classic garden city as their model. The present project is based on this tradition and transforms the garden city type into a contemporary form.

The design and organisation of the open space meets the needs of residential use, but also offers answers to the overriding demands on our cities, such as maintaining a comfortable urban climate.
Accordingly, the existing tree population will be preserved as far as possible and supplemented by lush tree plantings. A targeted selection of different native park and garden trees provides food and habitat for animals, which not only creates a high biodiversity of flora, but also promotes and supports that of fauna.
Analogous to the neighbourhood on the opposite side of the street, green front gardens along Binzmühlestrasse form the addresses of the individual units. The staggered row is made permeable by covered alleys leading into the settlement.
The interior of the site offers a sequence of development and garden courtyards, providing space for a variety of recreational and play activities, whereby the creation of a high proportion of unsealed and species-rich green spaces is also a priority here.
The topography of the settlement is shaped by an interplay of flat terraces and gently sloping meadows, which are interlaced three-dimensionally with the buildings staggered in the terrain.

Urban development: translation in a jump of scale

With staggered building forms and heights, a strong and structured settlement character with generous recreational spaces has been created in the existing simple and repetitive buildings. This space- and character-creating pragmatism is also to be brought to bear in the new scale of a double-sized settlement.
With a view to a redensification that is typical for the area and to the most efficient construction method possible, the permissible attic storey will be dispensed with and living close to the ground will continue to be offered with an even more intensive relationship to open space in the future.
Extensively protected from noise, five staggered longhouses, each with two courtyard and garden spaces, fan out at the back of the row on Binzmühlestrasse.
The community room and kindergarten are set as special forms and, together with the pergola lining the north of the plot and the retaining walls terracing the landscape, form a finely articulated, interlinking structure.
The combination of the different building types and their staggering in the terrain creates a differentiated living situation with buildings of different heights and scales with a very efficient building geometry and despite the necessary repetition factors.

Materials and façade

An efficient and sustainable construction method forms the foundation for affordable and durable living space. The floor plan was designed for economical spans and structural elements in timber construction, and vertical load transfer and crossing-free shaft routing are planned throughout. The use of natural and hard-wearing materials creates a high-quality living atmosphere and serves maintenance that saves resources by refreshing, repairing and partial replacement.