Green neighbourhood includes 300 homes

A design by Lausanne-based firm Dreier Frenzel Architecture + Communication was selected by the city of Geneva for an “ecological neighbourhood” to be built on a contaminated former industrial site.

The complex, near the centre of the city, will include three buildings with a total of 300 apartments on the Artamis site, previously used as a centre for alternative culture, the city announced on Monday.

Former factory buildings dating from the 19th century were torn down and the three-hectare property is being cleaned up under a process expected to be completed by the end of 2012.

The project includes low-rent social housing to be managed by the city, in addition to mixed accommodation managed by co-operatives.

One of the three environmentally-friendly buildings will offer apartments at market rents.

“This will not be a neighbourhood for bobos (bohemian bourgeois), but affordable housing for the majority of Genevans,” said Mayor Rémy Pagani, a member of the left-wing A Gauche Toute! party.

The project incorporates a school, cultural centre, 5,000 square metres of space for businesses and shops, green spaces and underground parking for 325 vehicles.

The site itself will be closed to motorized traffic.

Underground installations will also be built to house items from the collections of various Geneva museums.

The project is scheduled to be completed by 2014.