Motivation and initial situation

In Rothneusiedl, a new urban district is being developed that aims to serve as a model for climate protection, climate adaptation and circular economy principles. The RothNEUsiedl Charta defines nine guiding principles that are intended to shape the district in a climate-responsive and inclu-sive manner across a broad range of themes – from energy systems and rainwater management to the integration of local characteristics. The urban and open space masterplan builds on these principles and translates them into spatial planning concepts. These ambitious objectives raise the question of how such aspirations and qualities can be safeguarded, further developed and carried through implementation and operation over long periods of time. The project addressed this question by exploring how Baukultur, in the sense of the New European Bauhaus, can be not only articulated but locally embedded as a learning, applied practice within an ongoing urban development process. At its core was the search for attitudes and ways of working that provide orientation, enable reflection and remain open to future social, technological and ecological changes.

Project contents and objectives

The project New European Bauhaus RothNEUsiedl was conceived as an accompanying reflective process to the urban masterplan process. It examined how the high ambitions and qualities of a climate model district can be effectively anchored, further developed and carried towards im-plementation and operation within a long-term development process – and the role of Baukultur in this context. The focus lay on developing a shared framework for orientation that connects the different actors involved in the process. Central objectives included linking the European values and working principles of the New European Bauhaus with local planning processes, iden-tifying key challenges arising from the ongoing masterplan process, and fostering productive exchange among the participating stakeholders. The project aimed to strengthen awareness and acceptance of long-term development and to demonstrate how high cultural, social and ecologi-cal ambitions can be maintained over extended periods – by making adaptability, learning capaci-ty and an appropriate degree of flexibility visible as core qualities of a lengthy and complex pro-cess. At the same time, the development of RothNEUsiedl is understood as a contribution to the European discourse on Baukultur, by transparently sharing planning experiences and learning processes.

Methodical procedure

The project followed an iterative and dialogue-oriented approach that combined analytical, con-ceptual and reflective methods. The starting point was an analysis of existing foundations, objec-tives and processes related to RothNEUsiedl, as well as their positioning within the context of the New European Bauhaus. Building on this, dialogical formats and expert interviews were em-ployed to bring together different perspectives, review underlying assumptions and enable shared understanding. Reflection was understood as a central mode of working: insights gained from ongoing exchange continuously informed the refinement of content and conceptual de-velopment.

Results and conclusions

The central outcome of the project is the NEB-Kompass RothNEUsiedl. It brings together cultural values as well as learning and action levels, translating them into a practice-oriented and accessi-ble format. The Compass serves as a working and reflection framework for the ongoing devel-opment process and supports communication between planning, administration, implementa-tion and other involved stakeholders. Baukultur is understood as an applied practice. The pro-ject made clear that high cultural and climate-related ambitions cannot be secured solely through defined objectives or planning specifications. What matters is how these ambitions are ad-dressed and worked with throughout the development process – across different phases, con-stellations of actors and changing framework conditions.

The project demonstrated that learning capacity, reflection and dialogue are not supplementary activities but central prerequisites for quality assurance in complex development processes. Baukultur manifests not only in outcomes, but in the pathways and practices of planning, as well as in the handling of open questions, changing conditions and new insights that emerge over time. This leads to the necessity of understanding planning as an open yet responsibly guided process that allows for further development without losing sight of fundamental values and atti-tudes.

As a key project result, the NEB-Kompass RothNEUsiedl was developed as a shared framework for orientation that consolidates these insights and makes them accessible to different stake-holder groups. It supports communication between planning, administration, implementation and other actors and helps to make learning processes visible. The Compass encourages reflec-tion as the foundation of a learning planning culture, promotes experimentation as a bridge be-tween ideas, innovation and implementation, and fosters the sharing of knowledge generated throughout the process in order to strengthen teh impact of RothNEUsiedl as a climate model district. In this way, the project contributes not only to the development of RothNEUsiedl itself, but also to the broader discussion on how Baukultur can become effective in large-scale, long-term urban development projects.

Outlook

For the further development of RothNEUsiedl, particular potential lies in continuing the princi-ples of reflection, experimentation and sharing established through the project and ensuring their effectiveness in upcoming planning and implementation phases. At the same time, Roth-NEUsiedl offers the opportunity to function as a learning and reference project beyond its im-mediate context. Sharing experiences, decision-making pathways and learning outcomes can contribute to deepening the discourse on climate-neutral, inclusive and culturally ambitious ur-ban development at local, national and European levels. A requirement for this is that learning capacity, openness and dialogue continue to be understood and actively cultivated as core quali-ties of the development process.

Project management

Wohnfonds – Wiener Stadtwerke Entwicklungs GmbH („WWEG")

Project or cooperation partners

• Magistratsabteilung MA 21 A – Stadtteilplanung und Flächenwidmung
• Raumposition OG
• MOURA. Mobilität und Raum e.U.
• Technische Universität Wien, future.lab, Plattform für inter- und transdisziplinäre Lehre und Forschung
• Climate Lab

Wohnfonds – Wiener Stadtwerke Entwicklungs GmbH
Tel.: +43 (1) 403 5919 86680
E-Mail: wweg@wohnfonds.wien.at
Web: www.wohnfonds.wien.at/wweg