Via the New Transalpine Railway (NEAT), Arth-Goldau will become the first train stop between southern and northern Switzerland. A master plan is required to prepare the area around the the railway station for this enhanced site quality. It is developed in a stakeholder process involving property owners, representatives of the local population, representatives of industry and commerce, and public authorities.

The site developer is kicking off the discussion and communicating the master plan with a Smart 3D City Model by SEILER & SEILER. The model is developed by the planner in a remarkably short time with a new digital tool. The tool visualizes potential densification and combines maximal building volume with parameters, like the building height or floor area. Design aids assist with the selection of relevant sites and with the efficient fine tuning of building volume.

The Capacity Wizard allows automated and rapid identification of potential areas for urban densification. The results are used as a basis for specific area developments or revision of land-use plans. The Wizard allows more time for the election of the decisive parameters and the detailed analysis of the results and also guarantees consistent results.

The Capacity Wizard detects the current situation and calculates the capacity of construction zones with respect to construction volume, floor space, population and employment. These figures are calculated automatically for a selected area, yet important parameters such as densification rate or potential volume requirement per inhabitant or employee remain varied. The basic data sets used in the calculation can be easily and quickly updated periodically.

The Wizard is an ArcGIS toolbox that has been programmed with Python. A complementary intelligent Excel based tool allows the assumptions to vary independently of ArcGIS and thus it is easy to create and compare different scenarios. The city of Winterthur is using the Wizard as part of the overall revision of the land-use plan.

The city of Basel and its neighboring municipalities have become an agglomeration and accordingly, already today the transition from city border to neighboring municipality cannot be precisely determined by visual means anymore. Therefore, an analysis of the character and the extent of the core city of Basel independently of institutional borders was conducted on behalf of seven municipalities and under the leadership of the regional planning authority of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft.

In a first step, the quantitative partial indicators that determine the urban character of a spatial entity were identified and calculated: population density, availability of public spaces, variety of uses, construction density and accessibility by public transport. From these indicators, the current extent of the core city of Basel was deduced by means of an overall model. In addition, potential spaces that could achieve core city character within the next 20 years were identified. To this end, higher-level planning instruments such as the high-rise concept were evaluated, with the densification potential included as an additional factor.

The results of the study will be used by the affected communities as a basis for discussion for future regional planning issues spanning several municipalities or cantons and indicate areas for cooperation in the core city region.

Khujand is located on the Silk Road in the North of Tajikistan. With a population of 170’000 the city is an important centre of economy and education of the country.

An analysis of Khujand city and its state of urban planning was performed on behalf of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO. This study serves SECO as a basis for formulating the subsequent project which intends to strengthen the urban planning processes in Khujand. During a field mission to Khujand the project team conducted interviews with the city administration, NGOs, international financing institutions and civic bodies, studied essential documents and inspected various city quarters and infrastructural elements.

The results are composed of an analysis of the structure, issues and challenges of the city as for example natural hazards. In addition the state of urban planning is outlined with a focus on planning fundamentals, instruments, process, stakeholders and financing. The study concludes with recommendations about how the integrated urban planning project can be realised, with sketches of the most promising ideas.

Gotzenwil is situated on a pastoral hillside on the outskirts of Winterthur. There are 2 smaller settlements close by.

The City and Canton have decided to pursue a modest urban development in the Gotzenwil area. The urban framework will consider different development scenarios, taking into account the environmental impact, and a possible staged approach to developing the area. The urban development framework shows the delimitations and possibilities for future development.

The attractive location, on a rise above the city, is particularly ideal for families. The trend towards an ever aging population in Gotzenwil will be negated by the influx of families taking up residence in the family-sized apartments that will be built there. At the same time, accommodation types more suitable for older people would also encourage the older generations to downsize, allowing families to move into existing houses that have been vacated this way. The study will also show the interrelationship between the expansion of the public transport offering and traffic-reduced or high density developments.

The area known as First District is situated on the outskirts to the north of the Agglomeration Zurich, in close proximity to the Zurich Airport. It is made up of three areas formed by the freeway and the regional railway (S-Bahn). It follows a line of large employment-providing areas between the Zurich City Centre and the Airport. The vision that has been created identifies a great potential for a Global Business Area. The usuage mix includes office space as well as retail space to cover the daily shopping needs. The biggest challenge later in the development process will be to unite the 3 areas. The vision supports the decision making of the contracting entity. It shows how the land should be envisioned and where investing in a brand would make sense. It also shows the challenges to be faced in the development.

Andermatt is located in a barren valley high in the Swiss Alps. The new centre will serve as a link between the old and the new village sectors. At the same time it will also serve as a transportation hub for the Glacier Express, local public transport and the regional PostBus service. The new centre is designed with funnel-shaped promenades linking the railway station, the ski plaza and the sports centre with each other. An alpine park, situated to the north west of the centre, will provide leisure and recreation activities within close proximity of the resort. The layout of the town centre is clearly arranged and makes for easy orientation, which was also a defining characteristic of the old village centre.

This project looks at developing an urban extension on the southern outskirts of Baden at the point of transition into the suburban area of the city. The area is presently used for agricultural purposes and does not benefit too much from its proximity to the city. By 2020 a new living quarter will provide housing for 1300 inhabitants. The development concept comprises two to four storey buildings with about 500 units. A large meadow has been set aside as a recreational and leisure space.

The lakeside in Arth has aged, which is why improvements to several sections of the shoreline are planned: a generous public promenade, simplified access to the lake, and shallow water areas for ecological enhancement.

Our overall project management encompassed process development, stakeholder management, and the development of a vision for the future. This vision served as a crucial foundation to demonstrate the direction of lakeside enhancement during the planning credit vote. The development involved selected representatives from stakeholder groups and experts.

Following a positive vote outcome, the enhancement will be further refined with a study assignment. To initiate this study assignment, the general population was invited to participate. Approximately 30 individuals provided more detailed input on selected aspects of the competition program during two workshops.

The Metalli area is located in a prominent position in the center of Zug city, east of the railway station. It covers a focal point of retail trade and is of great importance for the further development of Zug city. As part of a well-developed inner development area of the cantonal master plan and with the high-rise regulation, diverse possibilities open up.
 

With a competition procedure for the Metalli area, the objectives for a sustainable center were explored:

• Utilization of the inner development potentials, compatible structural densification.
• Implementation in stages. Each step must be urbanistically coherent and enable a functioning center operation.
• Securing and renewing publicly accessible spaces of high stay quality.
• Improved networking for pedestrians.

The process support included drafting a planning agreement and preparing and conducting a competition procedure with intermediate dialogues. The process carried out laid the foundation for a design plan and construction project planning.
 

Arth-Goldau is the first train stop north of the Alps for high-speed trains on the north-south axis and an important hub in public transportation. In the cantonal master plan, the excellently developed area around the station is designated as a cantonal development focus. The site is intended to meet the requirements of a transportation hub in the future. Gradually, additional space for work and living will be created.

The process support for the overall project "Future of Arth-Goldau" included:

• Accompanying the political process
• Stakeholder management
• Designing a vision of the future with representatives of stakeholder groups and experts
• Developing a strategy for development
• Leading sub-projects
• Negotiating urban development contracts

As the first sub-project, the new barrier-free station square with five bus stops was put into operation. The next projects in preparation include various site developments.
 

In the coming years, the Dreirosenanlage in Basel Nord will be heavily utilized as part of the National Road Project 'Rheintunnel.' To strengthen the open space, early efforts are being made to enhance the adjacent Rhine riverbank. Possibilities were explored through a test planning process.

We accompanied the test planning with a digital model of the affected neighborhoods. The browser-based model was created from various data sources.

Teams had the opportunity to simulate complex situations above and below ground, across different cross-sections, and throughout various construction phases. They used model renderings for conceptual representations and cross-sections in their contributions. The evaluation panel was able to discuss the similarities and differences among the various contributions using the model.

The former industrial areas in the Basel Klybeck district are the origins of the chemical industry and are now gradually being opened up as closed production and workspaces. The transformation of the Klybeck area into a mixed and environmentally friendly neighborhood is a generational project.

Through various 'in-depth studies,' we have examined the potentials for new schools, sports facilities, and stacked work uses such as 'Urban Production' or 'Small Scale Pharma.' The developed concepts were prepared for the next phase, the 'Vision Statement,' of the development process.

The site of the former mirror cabinet factory is located in the center of a village in the Sihltal, Canton of Zurich. Its location within the Kernzone imposes high standards on the urban design and architectural quality of the redevelopment. A competition process has shown how the site should be repurposed for residential use:
 

• The repurposing of the former factory building from the 1960s gives the site a distinctive unique selling point.
   
• The "landscape restoration" strategy restores the original topography and makes the site accessible.
   
• A new linear building facing the village provides contemporary apartments and smaller commercial spaces, creating an active ground floor.

The processmanagment included developing a utilization concept as well as preparing and conducting a competition process with intermediate dialogues. The precise feedback on building regulations following the intermediate dialogues allows for a swift start to the construction planning.

For the purpose of inner development in structure plans, zoning plans, or area development projects, understanding floor area reserves is crucial. These reserves indicate where and how much additional residential and commercial space can be created in the future, while taking current building and zoning regulations into account.

We developed a new methodology for estimating floor area reserves on behalf of the Office for Spatial Development of the Canton of Zurich and implemented it in a model. This differentiated methodology, combined with updated datasets, allows for more precise estimates compared to the previously used model.

The first sub-model, "Existing Floor Areas," calculates the floor areas of existing buildings based on their volume. This is achieved using data such as Lidar or the solar cadastre to determine the roof type. The second sub-model, "Maximum Permissible Floor Areas," determines the maximum floor area for new buildings. The difference between these two sub-models yields the floor area reserves (in m² per building or parcel).

These two models are used in the spatial planning and statistics of the Canton of Zurich, not only to determine floor area reserves but also for land price models, value capture, neighborhood analyses, or municipal profiles. They can be automatically updated on a regular basis, making it easy to capture changes in the existing building stock or in the building and zoning regulations of approximately 160 municipalities and directly incorporate them into inner development processes.
 

The Unteres Bühl neighbourhood in Winterthur comprises around 300 dwellings, developed in several phases between 1976 and 1989. Prior to the next refurbishment phase, the owner sought to assess the potential of the listed housing estate. For this purpose, we developed a concept of use and designed and supported a test planning process through to implementation, including a masterplan and preliminary design. On the one hand, there was the opportunity to complement the existing housing stock and open spaces with contemporary uses. On the other hand, the estate had considerable development reserves. The project, which is currently being implemented, is characterised by:
 

• no lease terminations; refurbishment is carried out with residents in place
   
• a responsible approach to the architecturally and culturally valuable building stock
   
• urban enhancement of the neighbourhood, with improved open spaces and permeability
   
• no additional car parking spaces; instead, expanded cycling infrastructure

As a substantial contribution to urban regeneration, the project provides around 80 additional barrier-free dwellings. These are suited to the rapidly growing group of one- and two-person households. It is expected that this will also help release under-occupied larger family apartments.

The Dennlerstrasse neighbourhood in Zurich-Altstetten comprises around 240 dwellings, constructed in two phases in the 1990s. Prior to the next refurbishment phase, the owner sought to assess the development potential of the estate. For this purpose, we developed a concept of use and designed and supported a two-stage, anonymous architectural competition.

The development reserve of the site amounted to 100%. From an urban design perspective, the estate offered clear opportunities, as the street spaces were generally weakly defined. In particular, the longitudinal infiltration ditch offered potential to be transformed into an attractive public open space for the neighbourhood. For reasons of social compatibility, the owner decided to activate the urban regeneration potential of the estate in at least two phases. Particular attention was paid to achieving a favourable CO₂ balance.