DUO Dreilindenhang, St. Gallen (CH)

The Dreilindenhang in St Gallen is an exclusive residential area, with a fifteen minutes walk to the city center and just a few minutes by tram. The location offers splendid views of the towers of the old monastery on one side and Lake Constance on the other. The residential complex of four loosely arranged buildings that are offset from eachother, respects the natural topography of the slope and eases the rigidity and stiffness of the existing building structure. Each of the five-story houses contains 10 apartments, two on each floor. In the two northern buildings, facing lengthwise, the apartments extend from front to back and open on both sides along their entire length with inset balconies.

The four residential buildings are connected by an underground car park and by cellar units, heating and laundry rooms. Above ground, a wide access road also serves as a meeting zone for residents. The four main entrances are also located along this path, flanked in the two set-back houses by a 50 square meter studio with a separate entrance. From the underground car park to the top floor, each of the four houses is barrier-free accessible via a staircase. Exposed concrete dominates here, the handrails are made of wood and the balustrades of galvanized sheet metal. The yellow-green back walls correspond to the color of the curtains on the balconies.

The two southern buildings have corner-oriented living areas and downhill terraces and loggias. Almost room-high window fronts merge the surrounding outside spaces with the living areas inside. A porthole cut into the flat roofs lits the corridors in the top-floor apartments. Brightness and transparency characterize the generous atmosphere of all rooms. In all apartments, the spacious kitchen is equipped with white furniture and a worktop of noble black natural stone. The floors in the living rooms are barrier-free covered with oak parquet, the kitchens and bathrooms – each with a window – are tiled with porcelain stoneware, the walls and doors are painted white.

Client: ASGA Pensionskasse Genossenschaft
Location: CH-9000 St. Gallen
Architecture: Dietrich | Untertrifaller | Stäheli
Project management: Peter Nussbaumer
Competition: 2007
Constructio:n 2011-2013
Area: 3,530 m²
Capacity: 40 apartments, 2 studios

Planning 
total contractor: Rhomberg Bau, St. Gallen / statics: Schällibaum, Herisau / HAVCR: Enerop, Goldach / electrics: Schmidheiny Engineering, Widnau / building physics: Stadlin Bautechnologie, Buchs / landscape: Pauli Stricker, St. Gallen /// photos: © Bruno Klomfar