The constricted site – wedged in between the elevated rapid transit line and suburban fabric – and the urbanistic context led us to develop a reinterpretation of exterior-corridor apartment buildings. The project’s central element is a multi-story hall – with a vertical garden – which holds the vertical circulation. On the roof a terrace accessible to all residents makes up for the lack of green space on the ground level.

The location of the site – wedged in between the elevated rapid transit line to the north and suburban fabric to the south – led us to develop an exterior-corridor system at both ends of the building. A coat made of vertically faceted perforated metal cloaks the side facing the rapid transit line and the short ends, regulates the daylight, and provides views of the surroundings. This metal coat gives rise to a hall that is part of the building’s thermal volume and offers special qualities: it is long, narrow, and tall, and is characterized by different light moods and varied spatial choreographies. A cascade stair in the slit between the circulation leading to the apartments and the metal wall leads from the main entrance, which is situated in the west, to the top floor. In between, planters were installed to create a vertical garden (Atelier Auböck + Kárász) that, with the help of tension cables, plays an important role in defining the space.

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