Zurich: ZVH defeated in dispute over Manor conversion
The Manor building at Bahnhofstrasse 75 in Zurich may be redesigned, the Administrative Court in Zurich has ruled. It rejected a corresponding appeal by the Zurich Heritage Society (ZVH) and thus followed a ruling by the Building Appeals Court.
The ZVH wanted to place the use of the Manor building under protection. After the Building Appeal Court had already ruled against this request in May 2015 and rejected the appeal, the ZVH lodged an appeal with the Administrative Court. However, in its ruling on August 12, the Administrative Court also ruled that the use of the building as a department store could not be placed under protection because there was no legal basis for this.
The owner of the property, Swiss Life, wants to convert and repurpose the traditional building: The sales areas from the first basement to the second floor are to be used by individual boutiques in future, while the floors above are to be rented out as offices.
From the court's point of view, binding specifications on the use of a property would be a "serious encroachment on the property rights of the landowner". They could result in the economically sensible use of a building being impaired or even made impossible in the long term.
The Administrative Court also examined whether the open interior spaces were worth protecting - and thus indirectly the use of the department store. The court also denied this because the current use was already obstructing the open interior spaces. The public interest in preserving the spaces was therefore low and the obligation for the owner was therefore disproportionate.
The ruling is not yet legally binding. It has not yet been decided whether the ZVH will appeal to the Federal Supreme Court. Heimatschutz has 30 days to lodge an appeal. (ah)
