Basel: Two winning projects for SBB superstructure
The designs for the first stage of a neighborhood project at a freight depot have been submitted. Two ten-storey buildings with 300 apartments are being built, with potential repairs and dismantling taken into account in the design.
Over the next few years, SBB will be developing a mixed-use, 160,000 square meter urban quarter with around 600 apartments and around 1,000 jobs on part of the Wolf freight station in Basel. The plans for the first two new buildings have now been finalized. The site will also be opened up for interim and longer-term uses, according to SBB.
The two winning projects relate to the western part of the site, which is to be built on from 2027. The designs selected by the jury come from ARGE Experience from Paris and M-AP Architekten from Lausanne on the one hand and ARGE Parabase GmbH and Confirm AG, Basel on the other. They are two residential buildings, each with ten storeys and around 300 apartments of different sizes. They bear the working names "Janus" and "Binaria". The apartments are spread over all floors, and communal areas are intended to contribute to lively first floor zones.
Later dismantling considered
According to SBB Immobilien, the roofs are used for photovoltaics and as water storage and are partially accessible; some of the façades are also equipped with photovoltaics and greenery. Heating is provided by renewable energies, while shading and evaporative cooling provide thermal insulation in summer. Particular emphasis is placed on the fact that the choice of materials - e.g. screw connections instead of adhesive technology - and flexible forms of construction - such as a modular structure - mean that any repairs, maintenance and possible dismantling have already been taken into account.
Temporary uses should promote connection to the neighborhood
SBB has also announced that the identity of the site is to be shaped as early as possible by the surrounding neighborhood and interested parties. To this end, the site will be opened up for interim and longer-term uses. For example, the new sport of pickleball has recently been played on around 2,000 square meters in a historic railroad hall in the center of the site. According to SBB, additional rental space of between 10 and 300 square meters is also available for longer-term uses in the areas of culture, leisure and gastronomy. The spaces are located in and outside two historic warehouse buildings directly on St. Jakobstrasse. (aw)
