The Westhof Dübendorf stands on the plot of a former plant nursery along the tracks of the Hochbord area in Dübendorf near Zurich. The neighbourhood, a former industrial and commercial zone, is undergoing major restructuring due to its re-zoning into a residential area. Inspired by the site’s history as a plant nursery, the cooperative housing project with complementary communal uses creates an identity-forming place that fosters a strong sense of community and ecological connectivity.
The centrepiece of the development is a communal courtyard. Framed by three volumes, it blends into the surroundings with a 4-storey head building, an angled 3-storey wing building and a 9-storey main building. The volumetric setting defines different outdoor spaces with specific qualities on the ground floor, whereby great importance was attached to a gradual demarcation from public to communal and further to private zones.
The architectural design references the gardening business and the site‘s commerci¬al past. The project thus sought a robust and simple materialisation. The façade uses large-format corrugated Eternit panels. The pergola construction takes up associations with the greenhouses. Bath vents and various bird nesting places in vertical structures re¬minisce chimneys, highlighting the project's commitment to supporting urban biodiversity. Nesting aids for eight bird species as well as bats and wild bees were incorporated into the façade and on the roof. Creating balance between the built environment and nature, Westhof Dübendorf forms a micro-biosphere that integrates human habitation with nature, where landscaping and plants attract insects, providing sustenance for the birds inhabiting the nesting aids, creating a self-sustaining ecosystem that embodies the potential for urban architecture to contribute to the preservation and enhancement of biodiversity.
Westhof Dübendorf enables affordable, self-managed and sustainable living and working en¬vironments for a variety of uses and a mixed resident population. The project houses a total of 87 flats and six commercial spaces. It also houses additional communal units such as flex rooms, a multi-purpose hall and a guest room. In some areas, the size of the flats can be adjusted using switch rooms, allowing two individual units to be combined into one large unit. The flexibility in the building structure allows it to respond to different, chan¬ging needs and thus enables a long period of use.