Landscape Architecture In Zurich - A Historical Timeline by Hayal Oezkan

Peter Wullschleger, Hayal Oezkan, Lukas Handschin

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE IN ZURICH – A HISTORICAL TIMELINE

Index

From Urban Landscapes to Alpine Gardens

03 Open spaces in the 18th and 19th centuries 05 From private property to public park 07 Recreation in “public parks” 08 Green links 10 From brownfield sites to urban green spaces 14 Zurich 2025

Make a note in your 2011 calendar and be sure to visit the 48th IFLA World Congress in Zurich, Switzerland, where you can unwind, network and find some great ideas for advancing your career.

Imprint:

The city of Zurich has many public parks and green spaces. Each of these parks embodies a piece of the city’s history and is witness to the changing relationship between man and nature.

A special Topos publication,Verlag Georg D.W. Callwey GmbH und Co. KG, Streitfeldstraße 35, 81673 Munich, in cooperation with Grün Stadt Zürich, Beatenplatz 2, CH-8001 Zurich, www.ifla2011.com, on the occasion of the 48th IFLA World Congress, from June 27 to 29 2011 in Zurich. From Topos 73, Munich 2010. Responsible: Robert Schäfer (address as for publishing house) Text: Peter Wullschleger, Hayal Oezkan, Lukas Handschin All photos without credits by Grün Stadt Zurich. Graphic design: Sabine Hoffmann Translation: Caroline Ahrens Print run: 2,000 copies

Cover: The “tree pot”, a 155-metre long seating wall around the backstop of a former firing range in the Leutschenpark is illuminated by a blue light band by the artist Christopher T. Hunziker. Image © Christopher T. Hunziker

Landscape architecture professionals from around the globe will be meeting in Zurich for the IFLA World Congress on 27– 29 June 2011. Verdant surroundings, mild temperatures and innovative design make Zurich the perfect place for a gathering of landscape architecture professionals. More than 36 educational sessions, technical visits and social activities will be held over the three days of the Congress. In addition, tours will be laid on after the Congress, which will enable you to explore Switzerland, its mountain idyll, hospitality, world-famous gastronomy and unique landscape. The Congress is organised by the Bund Schweizer Landschaftsarchitekten und Landschaftsarchitektinnen BSLA (Swiss Federation of Landscape Architects) and Grün Stadt Zürich, the city of Zurich’s Office of Parks and Open Spaces who are looking forward to presenting you with an interesting agenda. www.ifla2011.com

Zurich in the 13th century was a small, labyrinthine town on the banks of the River Limmat. The lake lay far from the city walls. In 1642, the town began work on the construction of enclosing ramparts. This was the city’s largest construction project, and the land that it gained in the process provided space for new squares and gardens. In 1834 Zurich began to raze the town wall, sending out a clear signal for its expansion towards the lake. The plans of city engineer Arnold Bürkli claimed 216,000 square metres from the lake by means of landfill in only five years. However, this had been preceded by a swift and costly procedure to bring the entire embankment into public ownership. Until then the lake had been inaccessible, since the surrounding land was privately owned. The quay’s grand opening took place in 1887. Turning towards the lake and the mountains marked the start of a transformation from small town on the banks of a river to a modern lakeside city. Zurich’s sudden growth was certainly set off by the demolition of its fortifications but the liberal federal constitution of 1884 also made a major contribution. The city became Switzerland’s principal economic hub. Increasing prosperity led to the construction of many villa gardens and parks that continue to be highlights of garden art today. Excellent examples can be seen in the gardens at Villa Patumbah, Belvoirpark and Rieterpark. The demands made on public open space have changed over time. Promenading used to be an important aspect, but today the emphasis lies on the multiple uses provided by parks. The last decade has seen the construction of new and innovative parks, mainly in the northern parts of Zurich, which meet the multi-functional challenges of our times.

Open spaces in the 18th and 19th centuries Platzspitz. The place where the rivers Sihl and Limmat meet has attracted Zurich’s population

The gardens at Platzspitz stayed until 1854 but were

for many generations. The land was once used for pasture, but also for military exercises. Initial design interventions were carried out in the 18th century, when avenues were planted along the riverbanks. They became popular promenades beyond the gates of the Baroque city. In 1780 Johann Caspar Fries, who had been introduced to landscape design in France when serving as an officer in the French army, designed Baroque pleasure gardens, some of whose large plane trees have survived until today. 72 gardens on the land adjacent to the park were leased to citizens for cultivation in 1798 and remained there until 1854. The construction in 1847 of the railway station, which was wedged in between city and park, put an end to all of this. Within only a few years the Baroque park had fallen derelict. However, the first Schweizerische Landesausstellung (Swiss National Exhibition) in 1883 brought about another change. The park was redeveloped in the landscape garden style and adorned with small-scale structures. The band stand and path layout are part of the original design. Fifteen years later the Swiss National Museum was opened and the park acquired the prestigious character it maintains to this day. Hidden behind the station and the National Museum, the park was a perfect hideaway for marginalised groups of people. The open policy towards the drug scene led to a tragic peak in the 1980s, but was not halted until the park was redeveloped and subsequently reopened in 1993.

later replaced with large gasworks tanks and a corn silo. However, the curving line of chestnuts was respected. Detail

AWEL Kanton Zürich

from the town plan of Zurich around 1860.

The tip of the Platzspitz in its current form: the construction of the weir, completed 1953, improved control of the water level in the lake by damming the River Limmat by two metres. Consequently, along the banks of the Limmat the

Baugeschichtliches Archiv der Stadt Zürich BAZ (2)

Platzspitz had to be elevated and redeveloped.

The Platzspitz at the junction of the rivers Limmat and Sihl: the detail from the “Malerischer Plan der Stadt Zürich und ihrer Umgebung” by H. F. Leuthold, around 1850, illustrates how the wedge of the station divides park and city.

Arboretum. Laid out after extensive parts of the lake were filled when Zurich began to open

For the Arboretum clever contouring was added to the terrain that had only recently been taken from the lake, and groups of trees were planted in the late landscape garden style.

up towards the lakefront, the Arboretum is one of the most popular green spaces in the city today. Shortly before construction commenced, a group of renowned botany and geology professors presented the quay directorate with proposals of an improved concept including scientific considerations for the site which had initially been designed as a conventional park. This resulted in a committee being set up, which included amongst its members the landscape architects Evariste Mertens and Otto Froebel as well as the botanist professor Carl SchrĂśter. They succeeded in combining beauty and science in the new park by implementing clever contouring in the flat territory that had only recently been reclaimed from the lake, and planting groups of trees in the style of the late landscape garden. A geological collection and the first alpine panorama rounded off the scientific concept. Over the last one hundred years the trees have thrived; and many of them have now reached maturity while others have been replanted. The Arboretum, Zurichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first historic park, is maintained in accordance with conservation principles.

General-Guisan-Quai.

Baugeschichtliches Archiv der Stadt ZĂźrich BAZ (2)

On the promenade at Alpenquai, which was renamed GeneralGuisan-Quai in 1960, large numbers of specially designed benches with cast iron feet and red timber seats offered places to rest. The Alpenquai was so popular that it had to be extended to double its width between 1919 and 1921. The mature chestnut avenues date back to that time. In the course of redevelopment works in 2002, the asphalt from the 1930s was replaced with the original macadam surface. Trees now stand in the macadam and the space is no longer interrupted by tree pits. The bowl-shaped water feature by the sculptor Christoph Haerle provides a view stop and a link between the historical and present-day park.

Left: Contemporary coloured postcard of Alpenquai prior to its extension in the 1920s.The opening of the city towards the lake finds expression in the numerous benches with cast-iron lion-shaped legs. The terraced promenade at General-Guisan-Quai as it is today, with a double row of horse chestnuts pruned into whorled crowns and the bowl-shaped water feature by Christoph Haerle.

Zürichhorn on the eastern lakeside is by far the most used open space in the city.

Zürichhorn. On warm summer evenings Zürichhorn is the city’s busiest green space. With 2.5 million visitors per year Zürichhorn is one of the most popular leisure and recreation areas in Zürich. The landscape architects Otto Froebel and Evariste Mertens, commissioned in the 19th century to design the original Wildbach stream delta, proposed a generous park landscape around existing trees. Zürichhorn has been the venue for many major events including the Schweizerische Landesausstellung (Swiss National Exhibition) 1939 and the first Schweizerische Gartenbau-Ausstellung G59 (Swiss Landscape Industries Exhibition), both of which have left their marks. Changes in leisure behaviour and increasing pressure from usage offer constant political and maintenance challenges.

From private property to public park Belvoirpark

Fountain and flower borders at Belvoirpark are reminders of the first Schweizerische Gartenbau-Ausstellung 1959, known as the G59.

Giorgio von Arb

is one of the earliest landscape gardens in the region and is one of the pearls amongst Zurich’s parks. Three factors determine the appeal of Belvoirpark: its location with splendid views across the city, lake and mountains, the tension of its topography designed with large level changes, and the abundant backdrop of trees once considered exotic. In 1826 the merchant Heinrich Escher-Zollikofer, whose trade with North America had brought him great riches early on in his life, bought Wyssbühel, a vine-covered hill on the lake. He executed plans to excavate the hilltop and use the spoil to fill the boggy lakeside of Zürichsee and plant the site with exotic trees. From 1828 to 1831 the classical-style villa was constructed. After its completion Escher attended to the design and maintenance of his estate, which he called “Belvoir”. The construction of the railway on the left bank caused major interventions that severed the park from the lakeside. After the death of Escher’s granddaughter in 1891, Belvoir was at risk of development, but the park was purchased by a committee of citizens in a remarkable rescue mission. Following some minor alterations by the landscape architect Evariste Mertens, the park was opened to the public.

Giorgio von Arb (2)

Rieterpark was laid out in 1855 and still exudes the atmosphere of a generous landscape gar-

Rieterpark is one of the largest and best preserved 19th

den. In the mid-19th century the German merchant Otto Wesendonck bought a large piece of vineyard and commissioned the architect Leonhard Zeugheer and the landscape architect Theodor Froebel to design a mansion and park. For 14 years Otto and Mathilde Wesendonck’s estate was the cultural and social centre of Zurich. The subsequent owners were the Rieters, a family of industrialists from Winterthur who extended the estate by adding the Park Villa Rieter and Villa Schönberg. The design of the ensemble reached its high point in 1890. Its privacy was closely guarded for decades, but a plebiscite in 1945 resulted in the purchase of Rieterpark. The park was then opened to the public. Only Villa Schönberg remained in family ownership until 1970. Today, all three villas are part of the Museum Rietberg for non-European art.

century landscape gardens in Zurich.

Patumbah-Park. The story of the making of Villa Patumbah is exotic. Karl Fürchtegott Grob, a merchant from Riesbach, became enormously rich from his shares in a tobacco plantation on Sumatra. When he returned home, he bought a large piece of land and built a villa on it in the opulent colonial style. In memory of good times on Sumatra, he called it Patumbah, which in Malayan means “longed-for land”. The landscape architect Evariste Mertens was commissioned to design the grounds, and applied the classical landscape garden theory, only on a Swiss scale. Ornamental sections near the house, open landscape and a large potager were linked by a network of curving paths. After the Grob daughters donated the estate to Diakoniewerk Neumünster (a protestant social welfare service) in 1910 the villa was used as a nursing home, and in 1929 the northern section of the park was sold. From then on the elaborate estate was divided into two parts. In 1977 the city bought the villa and the sections of the park immediately surrounding it. Thanks to the “Pro Patumbah Park” popular campaign it was granted listed park status in 1985 and restored with the help of historical plans. In 1995 the private “Stiftung zur Erhaltung des Patumbah-Parks” (Foundation for the conservation of Patumbah Park) was founded. It was able to find a buyer for the northern part of the property, who intends to preserve the pretzelshaped network of paths so that the expanse and generosity of Mertens’s concept can be experienced once again.

Longed-for land: the gardens at Villa Patumbah have a chequered history.

Recreation in “public parks” Josefwiese. This chief public green space in the working-class housing estate, which was built at the end of the 19th century, was facilitated by the sale of the northern part of the Stadthaus site for a new building for Schweizerische Nationalbank. Half of the profits were used by the city to set up the “fund for the purchase of woodland and the creation of parks”. The first project was the Josefwiese in 1918, implementing proposals by the inspector for gardens Gottlieb Friedrich Rothpletz. Existing fruit trees were incorporated into the plan. The town master builder Hermann Herter designed a building of rural character, which served as a sales stall for milk. During the 1950s the first play equipment was installed, followed by a paddling pool in the 1960s. The park, designed for multi-functionality and variety, embraces the concept of the “Volkspark” (public park) that had emerged at the end of the 19th century. Large geometric lawns framed by avenues and small, sheltered zones on the edge are typical design elements. For the last two years Josefwiese has been restored according to the needs of the local population. Josefwiese is a typical example of a Volkspark, the public parks created at the end of the 19th century.

Bäckeranlage. In 1893 extensive immigration made increasingly apparent the lack of public green space in the newly suburbanised workers’ district of Aussersihl. The initial concept was intended as a people’s public park and designed by Evariste Mertens in 1901. It featured large macadam squares and paths that occupied most of the area. However, it failed to meet the needs of the population and fell derelict within a short period of time. In 1938 the Bäckeranlage, which had become a favourite spot for marginalised people, was completely redesigned by Mertens’s sons, Walter and Oskar. The overgrown grounds were extensively cleared. Paths and squares with existing planting borders were converted into one large, continuous piece of lawn, which was – an exception at the time – accessible and designed for play. With the addition of a paddling pool this was far more suited to the needs of the population. During the 1970s the park was once again taken over by homeless people. After the closure of the open drug scene at Platzspitz in the late 1990s, drug users came in and local residents again stayed away. A competition for a new neighbourhood centre in 2004 produced a simple three-storey building designed by EM2N. Now it is mainly young families that dominate the picture. Many people working in the area use the space in their lunch hours.

The 1938 redevelopment with sunny lawns and shade under clumps of trees still shapes the character of the Bäckeranlage.

Green links Schanzengraben, once a military fortification, now forms the idyllic, green promenade from the main station to the lake. At the time of industrialisation it had deteriorated into an unsightly factory canal. This changed in 1975, after it was redeveloped into an attractive inner city recreation space which traces the zigzag line of the former fortification. Schanzengraben has evolved from a military fortification into a green promenade in the city centre.

Irchelpark. The former site of an agricultural college forms a counterpoint to the new uni-

Contrasting the modern university buildings and the densely populated neighbourhood, Irchelpark was constructed with natural materials, and wild vegetation is tolerated up to a certain degree.

versity building and serves as a local recreation area. One of the city’s conditions was that around 400,000 cubic metres of excavated material from the university building had to be used to shape Irchelpark. “Terra”, a joint project by the landscape practices ASP Atelier Stern und Partner and Eduard Neuenschwander envisaged a naturalistic park with indigenous plant species – an “untouched” landscape with natural elements such as water, hedges and natural meadows. When it opened in 1986, the local population regarded the 32-hectare park with much scepticism. At that time the popular conception of a park included exotic trees, manicured lawns, flowerbeds and avenues. Criticism soon dissipated as it became widely accepted. Ichelpark now serves as a model in the argument against the controversial “designer parks” in the north of Zurich.

The banks of the River Sihl allow direct access to the water’s edge.

Sihlraum. When the two car parking decks that spanned the River Sihl near the main station became redundant as a result of the newly built Gessnerallee underground car park, Grün Stadt Zürich commissioned a project group to develop the Sihl spatial concept. It demonstrates how the banks of the River Sihl can be developed as an area of nature conservation and recreation. Gravel islands allow the Sihl to meander within its riverbed. Steps leading to the water’s edge offer room to linger, rest and look out over the river.

Agglopark Limmattal. The River Limmat provides a “blue ribbon” that passes through adjoining landscape spaces downstream from Zurich and forms the central open space and recreational axis in the Agglopark Limmattal. The project crosses both canton and municipal borders, and provides a continuous green recreation space that highlights particular urban design developments. Other areas are developed for tranquil recreation. Attractive footpaths and cycle ways are an integral part of the concept. The aim is to provide a landscape that, despite its continuing development, offers a liveable housing and working environment for residents. Agglopark between Zurich and Baden includes some sections with a designed semi-urban character.

From brownfield sites to urban green spaces The “Zentrum Zürich-Nord” project opened up one of Switzerland’s largest industrial areas for new uses. Proposals for the new district were based on plans by the young team of architects Silva Ruoss, Cary Siress and Karen Schrader. In 1998 special building regulations were passed and a framework agreement between the landowners and the city of Zurich was signed. This settled matters of land grants and infrastructure, but the owners also agreed to give the city of Zurich approximately five hectares of land for four new parks.

Oerlikerpark is a park in transformation. The project team Zulauf, Seippel, Schweingruber

The many ways to use Oerlikerpark are augmented by a water feature and a pavilion that accommodates the facilities required for all kinds of events.

Landschaftsarchitekten and Hubacher und Haerle Architekten took into consideration the constraints provided by a newly built neighbourhood, some contaminated soil, a road (Birchstraße) passing through its middle and the, at the time, unknown users, and proposed a park that would never be completed but is constantly transformed. Ash trees were planted very densely to grow into a walkable hall with a clearing at its centre, which straddles the road to link the two sides. Very young ash and other deciduous 3 to 4-metre high species were planted on a grid of 4 x 4 metres. Over time they will be thinned out to a maximum of 8 x 8 metres. The many functions of Oerlikerpark are enhanced by a water feature as well as a pavilion that accommodates the facilities required for various events. An intervention zone along the clearing was set aside for recreation and play in response to the wishes of the residents. A tower provides vertical access through the tree canopies and beyond the buildings’ horizon. It is reminiscent of the industrial chimney stacks that used to stand here and reflects humanity’s age-old desire for long views and distance. Zurich’s city council selected Oerlikerpark in 2001 as exemplary for a conscientious construction ethos and architectural achievement and gave it the city of Zurich’s award for good architecture.

MFO Park. Until the 1990s Oerlikon was dominated by industrial buildings. For around 100 years the site of the park was occupied by the engine factory Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon (MFO), which gave the park its name. The “Park-Haus”, designed by Burckhardt+Partner und Raderschall Landschaftsarchitekten AG, traces the volume of the demolished industrial building. MFO Park accommodates various activities: neighbourhood fetes, open air cinema, theatre performances, concerts and other events are possible. Some spaces in between are used as small garden rooms and, like boxes at the opera, present views into the hall. The sundeck on the roof offers panoramic views across the urban quarter. The park’s character changes with the seasons; in winter the structure becomes visible and then disappears during the course of the growing season beneath green layers of vegetation. In autumn the park is aglow with the red foliage of Virginia creeper. The park’s innovative concept has won many national and international awards since its opening in 2002. A steel frame covered in climbing plants at MFO Park echoes the volume of the demolished industrial buildings

Louis Häfliger Park opened in 2003 and lies in heterogeneous surroundings, nestled be-

whilst being awash with the play of light and shadow and

tween housing estates, industrial and service sector buildings. It was envisaged as a neighbourhood park. The proposal by landscape architects Kuhn Truninger is based on dissolving the

ethereal scents.

Lawn pyramids at Louis Häfliger Park are reminiscent of the grass funnels in which the former ammunition huts were located.

boundaries between park, industry and housing. Similar to a patchwork quilt composed of different pieces, the various fields meet and are united into one whole. Eight grass pyramids in the lawn reveal aspects of the local history. They form the quasi protuberances of the conspicuous lawn funnels of the former ammunition huts. The park’s patchwork is complemented with a band of play equipment for toddlers, a blue sports pitch for ball games and a timber stage. The name of the park reminds us of Louis Häfliger (1904–1993),“saviour of Mauthausen”. The bank clerk from Zurich took leave in 1945 and as a delegate of the International Red Cross accompanied a food shipment to Mauthausen concentration camp. Shortly before the Second World War ended, he led American troops to Gusen and Mauthausen concentration camps and so saved the lives of tens of thousands of inmates, amongst them many homosexuals. After being condemned by the International Committee of the Red Cross for his unauthorised actions, he was not rehabilitated until 1990. He also lost his job at the bank. Louis Häfliger was nominated for the Nobel peace prize in 1950 and 1988.

Wahlenpark.

In their concept for Wahlenpark the team of designers, Dipol Landschaftsarchitekten, Basle and Christopher T. Hunziker, Zurich, envisaged a multi-functional space for play and movement to be used by local residents and young people from the nearby school. The park comprises three sections: a bosquet, a playing field and a promenade. The playing field, which is uncharacteristically open for the surrounding area, comprises four distinct functional elements: a vast sculptural lighting mast, a robust ball stop net, a

The shade structure on an eccentric column beside a pool and wide concrete edge form a landmark in the Wahlenpark.

paddling pool with a wide concrete rim and a shade structure, all of which offer a contrast to the monochrome lawn. The park’s name commemorates Friedrich Traugott Wahlen (1899–1985), the agronomist and later federal councillor. He lived in Zurich’s Oerlikon district, and had planned Swiss selfsufficiency for basic foods as early as the 1930s. Thanks to Wahlen’s plan, better known as the “Anbauschlacht” (growing battle), famine was averted during the Second World War. Even parks and sports fields were used to grow potatoes and cereal.

The cover of foliage provided by randomly planted Gleditsia links different spaces in the park.View from the stage to the sunken playground with sand, climbing ropes and boulder wall.

Leutschenpark. The curved shapes at Leutschenpark, designed by Dipol Landschaftsarchitekten and Christopher T. Hunziker, introduce a new element to this district on the urban periphery, where the majority of buildings serve commercial or service industry purposes. The white concrete wall around the backstop of a former firing range forms a vast container, a “tree pot” that lends the space its particular character. A bench is integrated along the entire length of the 155-metre enclosing wall and is illuminated at night. Randomly planted Gleditsia form a cover of foliage that links the different spaces in the park. Between the trees there are gravel areas, a lawn square with a pool and a playing landscape for children, which entice people to linger. A stage takes on the function of the once-popular band stands and is available for all kinds of activities. The light installation designed by the artist Christopher T. Hunziker shines through the tree canopies at night and symbolises the underground Leutschenbach River which flows beneath this space.

Turbinenplatz. Zurich-West, another large development area in the city of Zurich, is a stepby-step conversion of an existing site into an attractive neighbourhood, executed in a cooperative planning process. Turbinenplatz (turbine square), around 14,000 square metres in area, is currently the city’s largest urban square. The design of the landscape architects refers to its industrial past. Rails subdivide the space and take water to stormwater basins where it soaks into the ground whilst supplying the vegetation with moisture. The lighting provides a further distinctive feature.

Gleisbogen. In 2002 and 2003, the city of Zurich and the owners of the land conducted a study of the arched industrial railtrack in Zurich-West. The first open spaces at Gleisbogen were realised by private landowners in 2003. The narrow band along the industrial railtrack forms the backbone of this “hybrid park” and is lined with Ginkgo trees. The area of ruderal vegetation at Gleisbogen provides a habitat for wall lizards and numerous insect species. It is listed in the inventory of municipal nature conservation sites. Consequently, different measures designed to protect nature form an integral part of the Gleisbogen site.

Turbinenplatz is located in the centre of Zurich-West; its design is reminiscent of the site’s industrial past.

Elegantly tapered arcs face one another at Gleisbogen Passerelle, spanning the access and exit roads at Pfingstweidstraße, and form the new gateway to Zurich.

Heerenschürli is the largest sports facility in Zurich.The changing room building also accommodates a public restaurant, and its roof forms the stands.

Sports facilities for local recreation. The Heerenschürli sports facility was completely refurbished from 2008 to 2010, and now it is much more than just the city’s largest sports grounds. The site also serves the recreational needs of local people, offering a restaurant as meeting place, a central square and a skater park. Changing trends in popular sports – away from tennis and athletics towards football – meant that the old grounds’ infrastructure had ceased to meet current needs. In September 2004 Grün Stadt Zürich, the sports department and the building authority launched a competition won by the “Immergrün”(Evergreen) project by landscape architects Topotek 1 from Berlin in cooperation with the Zurich-based architects Dürig AG. Two principal axes structure the new grounds. A square at the junction forms the centre of the site around which the sports pitches are grouped along with the changing rooms. The new playing fields are enclosed by distinctive 6-metre high ball stop nets, creating a translucent architecture in a series of spaces which, through the double netting in two shades of green, appear to have different degrees of transparency, depending on the viewpoint.

Zurich 2025 Zurich’s city council described the future of urban development in its Vision 2025 document. On the basis of this plan Grün Stadt Zürich defined ten strategic key areas for a sustainable green impact, from which was developed a general strategy for green spaces in the city as documented in the “Grünbuch der Stadt Zürich”; Zurich is a green city – and will remain so. The city has consistently and for a long time taken green issues into consideration, and it was worth it: international rankings of quality of life have repeatedly placed Zurich at the top of the world-wide list. The high quality of open spaces undoubtedly plays a major role. The city boasts a great diversity of plant and animal species, and there is no conflict between nature and urban environment. Regular surveys show the population to be content with the availability of green spaces and to consider this matter an important issue. The juxtaposition of uses determines the city as a living space. But it also requires careful planning. The “Grünbuch der Stadt Zürich” provides the city with a comprehensive strategy for green and open spaces. Nevertheless, demands made on open space are changing all the time. This is, and will remain, a challenge. Undoubtedly, the city will continue to grow, mainly through infill development. But in Zurich there is no development without high-quality green and open spaces.

Further reading Zürich: Stadtarchiv, 1987. 99 p. Reprint: Zürich: Verlag Matthieu des Zürcher Heimatschutzes, 2006.

Baumberger, Isabel. Freie Sicht auf die Sihl! Das neue Leitbild Sihlraum der Stadt Zürich soll den lange vernachlässigten Fluss wieder besser wahrnehmbar machen. In: Grünzeit 2003(6); 2–5.

Historische Gärten und Parkanlagen in der Stadt Zürich. Published in cooperation with Gartenbauamt Zürich, Büro für Gartendenkmalpflege. Zürich: Genossenschafsdruckerei Zürich, 1989. 119 p.

Bühler, Elisabeth; Kaspar, Heidi; Ostermann, Frank. Sozial nachhaltige Parkanlagen: Forschungsbericht NFP 54. Zürich: vdf Hochschulverlag an der ETH Zürich, 2010. 184 p.

Landschaftsarchitekturführer Schweiz. Udo Weilacher, Peter Wullschleger et al (Eds.). Basel: Birkäuser, 2002. 355 p.

Sigel, Brigitt; de Jong, Erik A. Der Seeuferweg in Zürich: eine Spazierlandschaft der Moderne von 1963. Zürich: Scheidegger & Spiess, 2010. 88 p. with a facsimile edition of the original layout by Willi Neukom

Leisi, Christian; Bächli, Daniela. Limmatraum Stadt Zürich: Landschaftsentwicklungskonzept (LEK). Zürich: Grün Stadt Zürich, 2006. 86 p., 8 plans

Stadtlandschaften: Schweizer Gartenkunst im Zeitalter der Industrialisierung. Julia Burbulla et al. (Eds.). Photographs by Anna Halm Schudel and Peter Schudel. Zürich: Offizin, 2006. 167 p.

Moll, Claudia. Zürich: ein Begleiter zu neuer Landschaftsarchitektur. München: Callwey, 2006. 80 p.

Strategien Zürich 2025: Ziele und Handlungsfelder für die Entwicklung der Stadt Zürich. Zürich: Stadtrat von Zürich, 2007. 30 p.

Nutzen und Zierde: Fünfzig historische Gärten in der Schweiz. Brigitt Sigel et al. (Eds.) with photographs by Heinz Dieter Finck. Zürich: Scheidegger & Spiess, 2006. 336 p.

Unterwegs in Zürich und Winterthur: Landschaftsarchitektur und Stadträume, 2000–2009. Roderick Hönig, Claudia Moll, Björn Allemann (Eds.). Zürich: Edition Hochparterre bei Scheidegger & Spiess, 2009. 168 p.

Das Grünbuch der Stadt Zürich: integral planen, wirkungsorientiert handeln. Cordula Weber et al (Eds.) Zürich: Grün Stadt Zürich, 2006. 155 p. Grünzeit: Zeitschrift für den Lebensraum Zürich. Published by Grün Stadt Zürich, Verbund Lebensraum Zürich. Quarterly magazine first published in April 2002. www.gruenzeit.ch Gute Gärten: gestaltete Freiräume in der Region Zürich. Guido Hager (Ed.). Zürich: Bund Schweizer Landschaftsarchitekten und Landschaftsarchitektinnen BSLA, 1995. 104 p. Hansen, Anne; Kräuchi, Men. Zürichs grüne Inseln: unterwegs in 75 Gärten und Parks. Published by Gartenbau- und Landwirtschaftsamt der Stadt Zürich; Judith Rohrer¸ Fachstelle Gartendenkmalpflege. Zürich: vdf Hochschulverlag an der ETH Zürich, 1997. 192 p. Historische Gärten & Landschaften: Erhalt und Entwicklung. Published by Institut für Geschichte und Theorie der Landschaftsarchitektur GTLA der Hochschule für Technik Rapperswil HSR. Zürich: vdf Hochschulverlag an der ETH Zürich, 2005. 136 p.

Rohrer-Amberg, Judith. Der Platzspitz: Chronik eines Gartendenkmals. Published on the occasion of the Swiss Year of Historical Gardens. Zürich: Gartenbauamt Zürich, 1995. 55 p.

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