Mobimo Holding AG: Aarau Torfeld Süd - outcome study project

Mobimo Holding AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous

07.12.2011 / 19:18

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M e d i a  R e l e a s e


Aarau Torfeld Süd - outcome study project


Lucerne / Küsnacht, 07 December 2011

Background
Mobimo is the owner of the approximate 50,000 m2 site at Torfeld Süd in
Aarau. The indus-trial firm Rockwell Automation currently occupies various
parts of the entire Mobimo site, while a number of smaller areas are being
used temporarily by other companies. The site itself is broken down into
four sites. From Summer 2012 Rockwell Automation will move into the new
'Polygon' building and restrict its activities to the perimeter of one of
the four sites. The consolidation of this space would permit the
development of the other three sites.

'Urban village'
On this site, which can be compared in size to Aarau's old town, Mobimo is
planning a new city district in which all user groups - i.e. inhabitants,
visitors and employees - will have a place.  This will give rise to an
urban form of coexistence comprising functioning and lively city districts
that can have structures similar to those of a classic village. For this
reason it has been given the working title 'urban village'.

In this district, the Aeschbachhalle, as a building meriting protection,
assumes the function of a central catalyst that will breathe life into the
new district. It is to be developed into a lively meeting point offering
gastronomic, seminar and other facilities. The hall's structural fabric is
to be renovated while consciously retaining its original industrial
condition.  A square is to be created in front of the Aeschbachhalle that
is to assume the role of the district's central meeting place.

As the 'entrance gate' to the entire site, the high-rise building at the
Gais roundabout will assume an important role by becoming a distinctive
feature and the distinctive face of this city district.

Sustainability: Successful precertification of the German Quality Seal for
Sustainable Building (DGNB) for city districts
Mobimo plans to have the new Torfeld Süd district awarded the latest German
Quality Seal for Sustainable Building (DGNB certification) according to the
utilisation profile for city dis-tricts. Mobimo already took receipt of the
precertification in October 2011. DGNB certifica-tion not only focuses on
buildings but also on the district as a whole unit according to its
ecological, social and economic terms of reference.

 
Study project with two focuses
In a first step in the direction of the urban village, Mobimo, in
collaboration with the city of Aarau and GastroSocial (which is to purchase
site 1), carried out a study project in which it invited eight architects
to participate. The architects are the following:

* Schwarz Architekten / Glass X AG, Zurich
* Burkard Meyer Architekten BSA, Baden
* ernst niklaus fausch architekten, Aarau
* Scheitlin Syfrig AG, Lucerne
* Schneider & Schneider Architekten GmbH, Aarau
* KCAP Architects & Planners, Zurich
* Gmür & Geschwentner Architekten AG, Zurich
* Kim Strebel Architekten GmbH, Aarau

The architects had to submit a draft for the urban development of the
entire site along with detailed draft plans for the high-rise building.
An assessment committee comprising representatives of the owner and city as
well as re-nowned experts reviewed the work submitted at the beginning of
November.  The commit-tee issued two unanimous recommendations.

Urban planning focus: 
The 'Stadtgarten Aarau' (Aarau city garden) project submitted by KCAP Kees
Christi-aanse Architects and Planners in collaboration with landscape
architects Schweingruber Zulauf impressed the assessment committee with a
unique direct axis. As building blocks of urban living in the context of a
construction plan, the individual squares of houses offer at-tractive
potential that can be ideally developed further by several architects. The
effect of the Aeschbachhalle will be heightened by the addition of extra
elements and in this way not only concentrate on the attractiveness of the
hall's interior.
KCAP as the author of the best urban planning project will be responsible
for the construc-tion plan and for managing the urban construction and will
receive a planning and realisation commission. Mobimo also plans to
commission other teams participating in the study project with the further
development, planning and realisation of individual buildings as part of
the winning project in the urban planning category. The planning phase
starts in 2012 and the first residents are scheduled to move into the
district from 2015.

High-rise building focus: 
Büro Schneider & Schneider in Aarau are to plan and realise the high-rise
building and de-velop further the services building under the leadership of
GastroSocial. The winning project impressed not only on account of
appearance and form alone but above all due to its office design and urban
gestures. In a next step the form and expression of the high-rise building
have to be further developed in an urban context and carefully transformed
into KPAC's basic structure and at the same time further developed.

 
Following the completion of the development and realisation of the
buildings on the Torfeld Süd site, Mobimo plans to keep a number of
properties in its portfolio and target the gen-eration of a sustainable
long-term return.


For enquiries please contact:
Mobimo Management AG
Stefan - Martin Dambacher, Leiter Projektentwicklung
+41 44 397 11 32


About Mobimo
Mobimo Holding AG was established in Lucerne in 1999 and has been listed on
the SIX Swiss Ex-change since 2005. The Mobimo Group has an attractive
portfolio mix of investment properties providing stable income and
development properties offering extensive value enhancement potential.
Investments are targeted mainly in the promising locations of Zurich and
Lausanne/Geneva and in the economic regions of Basel, Lucerne/Zug, Aarau
and St. Gall. With a property portfolio that has an overall value of over
CHF 2.0 billion, Mobimo is one of the leading real estate companies in
Switzerland. The portfolio contains development properties with an
investment volume of more than CHF 1 billion up to 2015 (as at 30 June
2011).


End of Corporate News

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149039 07.12.2011