Studio Gugger | High-rise Spenglerpark

High-rise Spenglerpark

The Spenglerpark complex used to be the headquarters of the fashion and the mail-order company of the same name. In addition to the administration, storage and dispatch areas, the employees had a canteen and an indoor swimming pool on their disposal. Excellent public transport accessibility, 500 underground parking places and the self-sufficient energy system characterise the property.

Starting in 2012 Harry Gugger Studio developed an intensification strategy for the property demonstrating the great potential the integration of apartments into the building’s use mix would offer. After examining various alternatives to the spatial organisation of this new use, the typology of the high-rise building at the northwest corner of the property has been recognised as a sensible and rational approach. The proposed high-rise building is integrated into the structure of the existing building, with minimal interventions and no negative effects on the neighbouring properties.

The proposed solution will become a new local landmark that will strengthen the already existing character of the property and provide it with an additional northwest entrance. Furthermore the proposed landscape concept will strengthen the link between the Schaulager and the surrounding residential areas, while providing more attractive public spaces for the neighbourhood and future tenants of the Spenglerpark.

Horizontal bands structure the facade of the tower, which is a direct reference to the existing structure of the Spenglerpark. The balustrades in the northern area are higher, thus providing an effective protection against the traffic noise of the adjacent road. On the opposite side the balustrades are reduced, allowing generous balconies with excellent daylight exposure allowing views into the landscape.

The triangular shape of the lower floors of the high-rise building is derived from the ground plan of the existing underground car park, but from the roof of the existing building onwards the floor slabs continuously change from triangle to rectangle. This makes for an efficient residential floor plan and an exciting and elegant structure, which gives the building a different shape depending on the point of view.

Only the northwest side oriented rises unchanged over its entire height as this layer consists of an emergency stair core including a fire brigade lift and two other regular lifts. The generous areas in front of the flat entrances are envisaged as an elevated street and common social space as much as a protection between the apartments and the noisy northern facade exposure.