Campus - 15.01.2025 - 11:00
Urban areas are attractive because they are both living and economic spaces, combining work, home and leisure. In Switzerland, around 85 per cent of the population live in cities and urban areas. However, with a growing population and limited space, these areas are becoming increasingly dense. Despite the increased pressure, there are still ‘gaps’ in the urban fabric where development has been left unfinished for various reasons. These are often found behind train stations and along the tracks, which is also described, for example, in the book ‘Hinter den Gleisen’ (Behind the Tracks) by Katharina Graf and Niklaus Reichle.
The areas behind the train stations and along the tracks offer great potential for future urban development. However, repurposing these areas requires not only good planning and investment, but also solid knowledge of the area. One example of a successful redevelopment is the Europaallee in Zurich. In St. Gallen, the St. Fiden train station and the freight yard on the outskirts of the city centre are among the city's most promising development areas.
The future of the freight station area in St.Gallen has been under discussion for years. However, the processes that have been initiated have often failed, not infrequently due to the different perspectives and interests of the actors involved.
As part of the course ‘Building the future – the significance of industries for urban development’ at the University of St.Gallen, students from HSG worked together with prospective architects from the ETH Zurich to examine the processes of urban development and planning – specifically using the example of the freight yard area in St.Gallen.
The students explored the area in groups and curated walks. Inspired by the ‘strollology’ of sociologist Lucius Burckhardt, the walks served as a methodological tool to get to know the social atmosphere of the area. The aim was to experience the area from different perspectives.
Researching the area through interviews and observations was a prerequisite for the creative intervention. Those who are familiar with the so-called everyday realities on the ground are better able to assess the consequences of interventions and whether they are sensible and feasible. The students transferred the complex interrelations and topics that emerged from this empirical research into so-called “actor-network drawings”. For this purpose, they were introduced to the basics of hand drawing by the painter Walter Dick.
The course “Building the Future – the Importance of Industries for Urban Development” was led by Dr. Niklaus Reichle, lecturer at the Institute of Sociology (SfS-HSG) at the University of St.Gallen. Insight into the world of architectural planning and design was provided by the renowned architect Prof. Momoyo Kaijima, full professor of Architectural Behaviourology at the Department of Architecture at ETH Zurich. She is a co-founder of the Bow-Wow studio and a winner of the Wolf Prize.
Images: Final presentations on 19 December 2024 / Hannes Thalmann