Zurich extreme housing shortage

[Buenzli]

Does the one million cost include the land?

[Axa]

@Buenzli

Where I live the zoning law describes in details the limits and shape of construction but it also mentions “character of the zone” as a factor. It gives the commune authorities a lot of leeway, same for neighbour objections. NIMBY?

If older people complains how the young leave and never return, or the population is decreasing…yes, NIMBY. The approach by the municipality to development is unsustainable.

@Buenzli

Let’s say the governing class first maintains a privileged low density area where the haves can buy houses without having to compete with block-of-flats developers for the land. These houses will be bought by middle class as well who doesn’t travel abroad etc and saves every frank for that investment; then the rules change and voila, eat the rich. Rules for zoning should be set many, many years in advance, especially such rules which might negatively impact people.

Of course, current property owners are the other side in this conflict. People with a mortgage should not find themselves with an underwater loan just because a change in development regulations. At the same time, stretching the budget but still not being robust enough to deal with changing prices is not something smart. Regardless of level of commitment and discipline, not smart.

So, current owners require a certain level of stability, while future owners and inhabitants (people that rent) also need a piece of the pie. Protecting one group more than the other leads to distortions. The housing shortage points at current owners being protected more than future owners.

[Roxi]

This reply by the federal council to a parlamentarian Postulat, effectively a question, gives a neat overview of the historical development and the long term drivers for the current situation.

Geschäft Ansehen

[Buenzli]

What sense does it make to tweak parameter like maximum number of floors from 5 to 6 and land utilisation coefficient accordingly in dense quarters (where smaller flats will be replaced by bigger ones effectively not really changing the number of people living there, and that at a huge cost) while all around the city there are quarters of houses with at most a couple of flats that would bring tons of new living space if zoned into the proper urban area. Instead there are enclaves for the rich and very dense unlivable quarters for the rest.
Case in point: Ecublens VD. I know this area well.
Left hand side: a cozy village
Right hand side: EPFL
There is even a Lausanne metro station at the EPFL and public transport buses nearby. Why all this infrastructure and a village next to it?
Google Maps: EPFL, Ecublens

[curley]

An other problem is ISOS, sorry only in German, French and Italian.
“The ISOS is the world’s only inventory of sites that covers the entire area of a country.”

When the “Bund” (government in Bern) starts mingling in as well it gets really slow.