ASPERN

Vienna is growing - Urban Lakeside Aspern 

Lakeside Aspern is Vienna’s fastest growing area. By 2035 this urban development will provide apartments for 25.000 persons as well as workplaces for 20.000.

This development has been driven by forecasts predicting Vienna will grow to more than 2 million inhabitants by 2030.

In an attempt to learn from mistakes of the past, the first thing was to draw up a traffic concept for Aspern around the extension of the underground line U2, then design an open space plan and finally the land use and zoning plan. The objective was to create a largely car-free area of the city that is well connected, accommodates a wide range of uses, is sustainable and offers attractive leisure opportunities centred on an artificial lake.

A quality-centered procedure for affordable housing projects were so called developer competitions in which architects work together with developers. There is also a site designated for co-housing groups. The result is a collection of contemporary apartment buildings designed by numerous renown architects.

The next few years will reveal whether the innovative planning strategy backed by various research projects really proves successful with the "lakeside city" developing into one of Vienna’s most dynamic and attractive residential Areas.