HISTORY AND TASK

This house from the 1950s and 1980s is exemplary among a large number of existing objects that are getting on in years. They are in need of modernisation and must be adapted to new styles or concepts of living, to demographic change and, above all, to efficient energy-saving measures.
The vacant property was to be reactivated as a retired home. A barrier-free design and a panoramic view of the Alpine foreland were key parameters of the construction task.

CONCEPT

When reusing the existing building, the focus was on utilising the structural resource. The presence of valuable elements was limited to the interior, which - such as the tiled stove - were protected and preserved. The external appearance was reinterpreted in line with the landscape: Parallel to the contour lines of the slope, a flat, elongated structure with generous, sheltered outdoor spaces was developed. To provide barrier-free access, the western part of the building was extended and the dilapidated structure replaced, and the lift and staircase were designed to be age-appropriate. The centrepiece of the building is the upper floor, where living now takes place on one level.

IMPLEMENTATION

The exterior and interior walls of the upper storey were largely retained, while two exterior walls were rebuilt in solid timber. Instead of the old pitched roof, seventy-centimetre-high cross laminated timber beams span the entire floor. Fixed glazed skylights bring light and the surrounding greenery into the living space. On the south side, the beams cantilever out almost four metres, narrowing towards the front and, together with the closed parapet, forming a sheltered outdoor space that can be used almost all year round. A sauna house was built on the neighbouring plot with mature trees. A walkway connected to the terrace, which is designed as a reversible steel structure, guides you there.