Zurich: Master plan for barracks area in place
The way is clear for the further development of the barracks area in Zurich. The government council and the city council have approved the master plan and the building lease agreement.
A large part of the barracks area between Sihl and Langstrasse in district 4 will become vacant when the cantonal police move into the new police and justice center in 2020. For the ongoing further development of the approximately six-and-a-half-hectare site, the master plan "Zukunft Kasernenareal Zürich" (Future Barracks Area Zurich) has therefore been developed, listing a program of action for the coming years.
Accordingly, the military barracks will be used in the future by the Education Center for Adults (BiZE), and the first floor is to be opened up for public-oriented uses such as gastronomy. The police barracks will be used by the cantonal police command until further notice.
For the listed armories, the master plan envisages rather small-scale uses for commerce, culture and social facilities. As the buildings are in poor structural condition, they are to be renovated at a cost of around CHF 55 million. The canton of Zurich will contribute up to 30 million. The barracks meadow is to be used as a central green space. The temporary police prison and its fencing will be demolished once the police and justice center has been occupied.
"As an identity-forming ensemble and with an open space of considerable size," the barracks area fulfills an important function in the city. The area is to create meeting and recreational spaces and appeal to the general population with neighborhood-oriented businesses, cultural and social offerings and the BiZE, according to a statement from the city of Zurich.
The City Council declares its willingness to operate the barracks meadow on a utility loan basis as before. The armory and the armory courtyard will be transferred to the City of Zurich under a building lease. The contract provides for a term of 50 years, the annual building lease interest amounts to CHF 410,000.
Now the parliaments have to deal with the master plan: The cantonal council must approve the corresponding financial resources, and the municipal council of the city of Zurich will decide on the building lease agreement and the conversion project for the Zeughäuser. As soon as the structural measures have been planned in detail, the municipal council and, in a second step, the electorate will decide on the object credit for the renovation of the Zeughäuser. (ah)
