Bern: Way clear for controversial building project in the Lorraine
The cantonal governor of Bern-Mittelland has granted planning permission for an apartment building on Centralweg in the Lorraine district of Bern. The project has been highly controversial for years.
The building application for the Centralweg development was submitted by the City of Bern's Land and Housing Policy Fund, represented by Immobilien Stadt Bern (ISB), back in spring 2013. The "Baumzimmer" project, which was the winner of a competition, was to be realized. The plan is for an apartment building with 13 apartments. The project met with criticism in the Lorraine district due to relatively high rents, with residents fearing a further step towards gentrification.
Three objections mainly criticized the insufficient number of parking spaces, non-compliance with the boundary distances and the lack of economic viability. The financing was also criticized for not being suitable for affordable housing. In 2014, the client submitted an amendment to the project. The amended project complied with the boundary distances and the client also dispensed with the extensions, the so-called tree rooms, and provided for conventional balconies instead.
In 2015, the building permit procedure was suspended because it was first necessary to wait for the building class plan to be amended. The amended and approved building class plan came into force on September 22, 2017. The Bern-Mittelland district governor Christoph Lerch therefore had to decide on the building application again - he now granted the building permit. In his view, the points of criticism raised in three objections were unfounded under public law, Lerch announced.
However, according to local media reports from regional media, construction on Centralweg is not expected to start quickly for the time being. The city of Bern is therefore initially looking for ways to build more cheaply in order to enable lower rents. The responsible Directorate of Finance, Human Resources and IT has been instructed to put the execution work for the construction project out to tender again and to present a cost-optimized project by autumn 2018. If the construction project changes significantly, the City Council will then have to revisit the matter.
