The design task was to create a multi-family building with 29 compact apartments and additional shared communal areas. A complex urban context (including noise protection and proximity/building rights), combined with the client’s explicit request to explore spatial qualities beyond rentable floor area, resulted in the development of a distinct typology. An open staircase provides access to a variety of apartments through a hybrid arrangement that combines a three-unit core with an access gallery. The western head building is occupied by studio apartments on each floor, while the regular floors are organized as maisonettes that offer generous spatial qualities within a compact footprint. Reflecting its urban presence, the collective circulation space of the gallery is built in solid in-situ concrete, while the dense partition structure of the apartments is constructed in cross-laminated timber (CLT) walls and slabs. The volumetric composition is topped by an expressive sawtooth roof. Planters and climbing greenery line the gallery and terrace areas, defining the building’s expression and highlighting the distinctiveness of this residential typology. The building is constructed predominantly in solid timber/CLT and will be certified to the SNBS Gold standard.
Team JCFA: Dominic Kim, Noémi Orth, Ludwig Hänssler, Amos Mauri, Nicola Nussbaumer, Carolina Gomes, Severin Graf, Han-Seul Ju