Residential neighbourhood in a former scales factory
(North-Rhine Westphalia)
Source: Kaiser Schweitzer Architekten, Aachen
The production and administration buildings of the Widra-Waagenfabrik, built in 1900, have been modernised over the years to meet the changing requirements. After stopping scales production on the site, a new residential neighbourhood has been built for senior and disabled people and for families.
The location of the former scales factory Widra on the outskirts of the Aachen inner city (pop. 258,000) is particularly suited to residential use. The site has good local public transport links. The surrounding neighbourhood contains numerous retail outlets which cover the basic needs of the inhabitants.
Photography: Hans Jürgen Landes, Dortmund
Some of the factory buildings were demolished for the apartment buildings. In order to secure important identifying elements of the historical industrial architecture, the facades of the Ziegelbau building built in 1900 and the scales factory built in 1936, with their extension built in 1964, have been kept. There, and in a new building, which fills a long-standing empty site, a total of 25 apartments were erected in late summer 2007. The Ziegelbau contains eight apartments with areas of between 53 m² and 74 m². The scales factory offers eight large apartments of between 66 m² and 329 m². A further 9 apartments have been realised in the space between the buildings. The total site has been developed without barriers.
In the former 7.50 metre high scales factory, two crane tracks had to be dismantled. Only then could six apartments suitable for senior citizens, with direct access to the apartments' own garden, could be built. The 700 m² upper storey is shared by the two sheltered housing groups, each for eight residents. They have a generous community area with kitchen and a Loggia.
The realisation of the sheltered housing group, a particularly appropriate form of housing for people with psychogeriatric disorders, was a pilot project in the city of Aachen and belonged to the central concerns of the housing project. The Alzheimer-Gesellschaft Aachen is the main tenant of the two apartments and sublets the rooms to the residents. A private nursing service, which is located locally, looks after the residents. As a 24-hour service, it gives the residents the permanent feeling of security that is essential for a sheltered housing concept.
23 apartments have been publicly subsidised. The two groups of sheltered apartments for dementia patients or people with needing care have been financed independently. The rent for the publicly subsidised apartments totals Euro 4.55 /m², and for the independently financed apartments Euro 6.50 /m². In the new building, 2 commercial units for medical practices round off the space allocation plan.
Despite the central location of the site, the courtyard character of the development guarantees peaceful housing for the residents with direct access to a green courtyard. A four-storey development from around 1920 protects the site from traffic noise from the adjacent streets.
The total cost for the project was Euro 5.3 million. Of this, Euro 1.9 million was provided through public subsidy.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 12/2004 | The former scales factory Waagenfabrik purchased by the developer |
| 03/2005 | Start of planning |
| 11/2005 | Building application |
| 03/2006 | Start of construction |
| 03/2007 | Completion of 1st section: Publicly subsidised apartments and commercial premises on the ground floor |
| 03/2007 | Completion of 2nd section: Parts of buildings converted, apartments and sheltered housing groups |
| 09/2007 | Completion of 1st section: publicly subsidised apartments and commercial premises on the ground floor |
| 04/2008 | "NRW Wohnt" awarded by the North-Rhine-Westphalia Ministry for Construction and Transport (MBV) and the Architektenkammer Nordrhein-Westfalen (aknw, North-Rhine-Westphalia Architects Association) |
Photography: Hans Jürgen Landes, Dortmund
Photography: Hans Jürgen Landes, Dortmund
Photography: Hans Jürgen Landes, Dortmund
The housing development on the Widra site for dementia patients in sheltered housing groups was one of the first projects of this kind in Aachen. The structures of the building allow these groups of residents to live together with the other residents. The quality of the publicly subsidised apartments comes from the individual house and garden accesses, thereby supporting joint living in the identity-making neighbourhood. Confident joint living between young and old has been created with this project.
The projekt site ist to be found at postal code: 52068 - town: Aachen - street: Eifelstraße 1 / Josef-von-Goerres-Str. 82a.
Architects Arge Eifelstrasse
Project development
Record inserted on 25.05.2009 by the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) within the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR).
Last update: 17.08.2009