STUDY AREA
16,8 ha
INTERVENTION AREA
7,1 ha
AREA FOR ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT
1,6 ha

CONURBATION
Lauterach is located in Vorarlberg’s Rhine Valley with the panorama of the Alps in the back.
The specific location, close to Switzerland and Southern Germany, turns the region into unique and economically very prosperous area. On the other hand the success caused a
a dispersed agglomeration in which a series of communes melt into one large sprawl of development. It is one of the fastest growing communes in Austria, with a considerable land reserve for construction. Even though the individual communities are quite small, the agglomeration of the area has about 237.000 inhabitants. The continuos growth has recently led to traffic problems: as always in suburban areas, the car is the most preferred means of transportation, connecting the people with attractive points in the whole area of the Rhine Valley.

THEME
improved infrastructure x densification = public space
The goal is to restructure and densify the center of Lauterach in order to create a focus in the agglomeration area. The architectural and urban concept should provide a center for social and public life. There is also a need of professional acting and innovative solutions, beyond generic archetypes of the traditional image of the „village“, in order to define a new idea of a center in an area of urban sprawl.
Due to heavy traffic infrastructures (train, street and highway) along the L190-street, along which important buildings are located (town house, social center, cemetary, factories in S). the living quality is strongly affected.

SITE
A large construction and developer-firm intends to move from the center to the periphery, which offers a starting point for a completely new development of the town Lauterach by recreating a “center”. This site is situated north of the cemetary/ church and opens up various strategic possibilites. It offers a new chance to focus on a center of public life.
The square around the existing townhall (north) and the social center as well as the “Alter Markt” (old market – south) should be also taken into consideration for the urban restructuring of the city.

PROGRAMME
The commune prepares major interventions with drastic changes. Lauterach wants to initiate an attractive development-band that runs parallel to the L190 (N-S) and involves the area of the construction firm.

Within this band there should be:

• a social center as a start up project – a “house of generations”: apart from a seniour citizen’s home it should also include social services like doctor’s practice, childcare, student’s care, mobile services, multifunctional areas.
• possibly the new townhall/ administration as long term project
• office areas (about 2.000 sqm) as a new headquarter for the construction firm
• a housing project close to the social center
• the design of the “Alter Markt” (old market) as a dense urban center with business, banks etc., under consideration of the scale of the town.

ISSUES

SOCIAL / FUNCTIONAL
The social aspect of the project is of great importance, especially since the topic is to develop a new type of social life/ public life for towns of this small size. It should also be considered as a challenge for urbanism: how to densify without introducing urban models of intervention? At the same time the competition looks for a specific architecture project for the site and programme (social center) mentioned above. A realization in several steps should start right after the Europan competition.

SENSITIVE
The desire for densification also meets a paradox: along with the development of new built substance in the inner area, a continuous network of unbuilt green areas should be established as well, including bicycle and pedestrian paths.

SUSTAINABILITY
the dispersed functions of cemetery, train station, town hall should be linked by a strategic and creative urbanistic concept, taking advantage of the disposal of the new site (area of the construction firm which moves out) right in the middle of this area. A new idea of a quiet towncenter with green areas, yet allowing a densification.