- Media
- Press releases
- Mobimo Holding AG: Aarau Torfeld Süd - outcome study project
December 7, 2011
Mobimo Holding AG: Aarau Torfeld Süd - outcome study project
Mobimo Holding AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous 07.12.2011 / 19:18 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 07.12.2011 News transmitted by EquityStory AG. The issuer is responsible for the contents of the release. EquityStory publishes regulatory releases, media releases on the capital market and press releases. The EquityStory Group distributes authentic and real-time financial news for over 1'300 listed companies. The Swiss news archive can be found at http://www.equitystory.ch/nachrichten --------------------------------------------------------------------- 149039 07.12.2011