Alles Wird Gut, translated as “Everything is Fine,” is an architecture firm in downtown Vienna that focuses on doing more with what’s available. I was able to discuss and visit two of their socially centered projects in the city, the ERZ Social Housing and magdas HOTEL.
ERZ Social Housing
The city of Vienna hosts regular architectural competitions for their social housing building needs, with 1/3 of the flats going to the city for affordable housing. The rest are made available through typical means by the developers, leased at the same rate. AWG and feld72 collaborated on the ERZ project, offering a diversity of unit types from individual to families. The rooftop decks and semi-private balconies encircle green spaces and children’s play areas below, with many opportunities for social interaction.
Visiting the site, you would never guess this building included low income units. What they’ve accomplished is housing integrated across all economic means. With roughly 65% of the city’s housing subsidized by the government, not only are residents happy with the social housing model, they’re willing to contribute more in taxes to keep ensure it continues. As a result, stigmas and fears around low income housing are diminished, and resources and infrastructure are spread more evenly across neighborhoods.
So what does Alles Wird Gut's public housing look like?
It looks like a place I’d want to live.
magdas HOTEL
Enlisted by Caritas, a Catholic organization offering social services throughout Europe, AWG managed the re-design of an existing retirement home turned hotel. It is a social business run by 20 former refugees who live on site, and 15 professional hotel staff. While the goal of the hotel is maximizing openness and humanity, the designers’ focus was giving it a feeling of home.
Working with a very limited budget, they put their efforts into securing the best possible materials, rather than the cheapest. It took a lot of cooperation from existing industry relationships, but yielded a high quality interior environment. The designers also made sure to re-purpose everything on site, eliminating waste. Neighbors, refugees and contractors donated their time or worked at low cost to pair up and do projects like repairing chairs and lamp making.