Terraced-House Estate in Zurich

The central aim of the competition held by the canton of Zurich was to create a compact yet flexible dwelling form to a tight budget. The winning concept is based on a modular construction system that allows a house to be extended by up to four rooms during the planning stage simply by inserting a further sequence of spaces between two dwelling units. A minimum room width of 2.85 m ensures functional flexibility. The open layout of the ground floor serves to integrate the whole, while the two-storey staircase space with a tall, narrow window ensures spatial continuity between the two living levels. For sound insulation reasons, the houses were built in a solid form of construction, with controlled air supply and extract. Small sheds divide the private garden areas from each other, and a covered veranda provides outdoor privacy. The veranda can be closed with a glass front if the occupants so wish, in which case it becomes an acoustically screened conservatory space.