Housing and Office Block in Vienna

This high-density development adopts the traditional built structure of the neighbourhood, closing off the street block with a seven- storey housing strip 15 metres deep. The dwellings are organized in groups of three and four around two access cores. Behind the housing tract are small commercial units and offices. In addition to the courtyard areas that allow daylight to penetrate to the internal spaces, the accessible planted roofs also serve to dissolve the boundary between the urban and natural environment. Living, working and recreational activities are harmoniously mingled. On the courtyard face of the dwellings are small balconies with glazed balustrades which also help to draw the verdant surroundings into the living spaces. The loggias on the noisy street face form buffer zones that are screened off by etched glass and that extend in part over two storeys, thereby creating a generous sense of light and space. Like the landscaped areas and courtyards, the bright, amply dimensioned access zones also function as places of communication.