Background

The project presented is assignable to the field of examples "miscellaneous individual construction projects". As such, it influences the regional settlement development of the town area of Kiel-Mettenhof. It has a sustained influence on the development of that town area because efforts are made with this project to break through the anonymisation of living. This project is addressed to three groups of persons which are especially disadvantaged on the housing market: female single parents, families with children, and elderly people. With the help of a residential facility orientated to their special needs, these groups are put in a position to live in a neighbourhood organised by themselves, thus acting against elderly people getting lonesome on the one side, and against communalizing the cost caused by the special situation of single parents and families with children on the other. Supply and integration advantages for the different social groups are realised by this type of mixed utilisation.

Narrative

The residential facility comprises 42 housing units in four three-storey buildings, which are arranged in U-shape. The inner yard, placed away from the road, is entered through a closed entrance hall. The yard is the access zone for all four houses , thus constituting a central point of meeting and cooperation for the inhabitants. It is closed by a separate single-storey common pavilion with multipurpose room, kitchen and sanitary room. Utilisation and maintenance of the common-use facility are organised by the inhabitants themselves. A children' s playground and seats exist in the inner yard, so that communication between young and old is facilitated. At the entrance of each house there are spaces to leave prams, toys, and bicycles. It is intended that contacts between the different generations are intensified by the fact that all types of inhabitants are represented in each house.
The dwelling are arranged in a child- and family-oriented way. A large room is the centre in which the activities of eating, cooking, living, and the supervision of children are united. The kitchen areas of the dwellings for families and female single parents face the yard, so that visual and calling contact exists with the playing children. The dwellings for one and two persons are situated away from the inner yard in order to meet the elderly people's increased need of peace. The dwellings suited for old people are situated near a staircase in order to facilitate mutual assistance. These dwellings can be reached by lift.

The dwellings for one to five persons with living spaces from 45 to 85 sqm consist of six one- and two-person units suitable for old-age people, 13 units for female single parents with one or two children each, 12 units for one- and two-person households, and 11 units for families with one to three children. The common pavilion has a useable area of 110 sqm. There are 39 parking spaces in all in the immediate vicinity of the housing estate.

The housing estate is integrated into a exciting living quarter. It is directly connected to the public traffic system. There are offers of child care, schools, sports facilities, care for old and sich people as well as every possible means of supply in walking distance.

Impact

• Reduction of social costs through housing
• Teamwork with local community and ministies
• Specific life situations of women and families and older people was focused by the planning of this BP
• Sustaniable regional city development by setting up a modell projectwith 42 dwellings

Sustainability

Besides the intent of this model project to avoid social costs arising from the disadvantagement of certain groups of people, from the anonymity existing in housing estates and from the isolation particulary of elderly persons by creating a housing structure in connection with an integrative structure of tenants, there is a second reason for presenting this project as an example of developement at this point. This second reason lies in the special type of planning and the cooperation with public authorities.
The plans were executed by women for women. WOBAU Schleswig-Holstein initiated a working group in 1992 consisting of female representitives of the ministry for women, the ministry of the interior, the ministry of social affairs, health and energy, the commisioner for the parity of treatment of the Land capital, Kiel, as well as a planning team from WOBAU Schleswig-Holstein. Due to this working group, there was close cooperation with the Land of Schleswig-Holstein and the town of Kiel from the very beginning. In order to realise the special forms of living without having to renounce public funds, exemption from the subsidy rules had to be obtained. The Working group for Modern Building e.V. and the technical department of the investment bank of Schleswig-Holstein have agreed to these deviations because of the model character of the project.
In all, this project shows that within the subsidised housing construction scheme it is possible to provide a high quality of living for the specific needs of the particulary disadvantaged groups of people at comparatively little cost and few deviations from the standards of subsidy rules.
The project can easily be repeated in smaller towns as well. Planning ideas, typical flat layouts and certain details are excellenty suited for importing into similiar construction projects, which may then have a smaller number of housing units, as the case may be.
The planning, the close cooperation with the Land authorities, the town and the fund-granting agencies can serve as an example for further construction projects.

Indicators

• Reduction of social costs through housing Women planed for women.
• Teamwork with local community and ministries.
• This project shows that within the subsidised housing construction scheme it is possible to provide a high quality of living for the specific needs of the particulary disadvantaged groups of people at comparatively little cost and few deviations from the standards of subsidy rules.
• Specific life situation of women and families and older people was focused by the planning of this modell project.

Contact

WOBAU Schleswig-Holstein, Mr. M. GÖrge
Vaasastr. 29-37
Kiel -Mettenhof
Land Schleswig-Holstein
Germany
24113
0049/431/6890415

Sponsor

WOBAU Schleswig_Holstein
WOBAU Schleswig-Holstein
Theodor-Heuss-Ring 49
Kiel
Schleswig-Holstein
Germany
24113
0049/431/6890415

Partners

Federal Republic of Germany, County Schleswig-Holstein, Min. of Labour
WOBAU Schleswig-Holstein, George, Martin
Theodor-Heuss-Ring 49
Kiel
Land Schleswig-Holstein
Germany
24113
0049/431/6890415

Fed. Rep.of Germany, County Schleswig-Holstein, Min o. the Interior
WOBAU Schleswig-Holstein, Bunde, Gregor
Theodor-Heuss-Ring 49
Kiel
Land Schleswig-Holstein
Federal Republic of Germany
24113
0049/431/6890415

Women Deputy of Kiel