High-rise building canceled Zurich loses 60 apartments due to construction dispute
A planned 70-meter tower in Zurich's Kreis 5 district will not be built. This means that 60 planned apartments will also disappear. This is also causing criticism.
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- Tellco Immobilien AG has decided not to build a 70-meter high-rise in Zurich West.
- Instead of 170, only 109 apartments will be built - none of them non-profit.
- Opponents of high-rise buildings see a success, critics speak of a damaging blockade.
An ambitious construction project in Zurich West is being drastically scaled back: Tellco Immobilien AG has removed the planned 70-meter tower from its plans, as reported by theTages-Anzeigernewspaper.
Instead, only a six-storey perimeter block development is to be built on Heinrichstrasse - with significantly fewer apartments than originally planned.
The reason for the decision is the complicated approval process in Zurich. A special permit and a private design plan would have been required for the construction of the high-rise building. However, in the past, such procedures have often triggered political blockades and legal appeals - most recently with the Hardturm Stadium. Tellco did not want to take this risk.
Praise - but also criticism
By reducing the project to a smaller one, the real estate company is saving itself lengthy procedures. However, this means that 60 apartments will be lost - including 30 that were intended for charitable purposes. The originally planned deal with the city, according to which Tellco would have provided affordable living space in return for the larger building height, has therefore come to an end.
While opponents of the high-rise building welcome the end of the project, the decision has also drawn criticism. FDP local councillor Hans Dellenbach spoke to the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper of a "harmful culture of prevention" that is increasingly deterring investors in Zurich. "There are many projects that are being delayed or blocked by political and legal hurdles - and this in a city that urgently needs living space," says Dellenbach.
The city of Zurich was surprised by the change in plans. The planning application is now being reviewed as normal and construction work is not due to start until 2026 at the earliest. The original design from 2019 is therefore finally history - and with it the hope of more affordable living space in District 5.
