New living space through densification often comes at expense of the poor

New living space through densification often comes at the expense of poorer people Keystone-SDA

Densification contributes to the creation of new flats in urban centres, according to a Swiss study. However, if demolition and new construction are carried out and tenants have to make way, low-income households are affected more often than average.

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The study by the Spatial Development and Urban Policy research group at federal technology institute ETH Zurich analysed the five largest agglomerations in Switzerland: Zurich, Bern, Basel, Lausanne and Geneva. It was presented to the media on Tuesday by the Federal Office for Housing.

In the past 20 years, hardly any new housing has been built on greenfield sites in cities. New flats have been built primarily in replacement buildings and by adding storeys and converting industrial sites. Industrial sites had potential: depending on the agglomeration, they accounted for up to 63% of new buildings.

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The number of tenants who had to move due to a replacement building or total remodelling also varied from agglomeration to agglomeration. Households with relatively low incomes were often displaced.

Translated from German by DeepL/ts

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