4.6 “Buchengrün”: façade greening for a Wiener Wohnen property in Favoriten

Partners: Wiener Wohnen, GrünStattGrau (GSG)

Trees and greened façades offer the best protection against urban heat. The greened inner courtyards of municipal housing estates in are living proof of this fact. With a total of 1,800 housing estates, Wiener Wohnen has access to a vast potential for effective, sustainable solutions.

The municipal housing estate in Buchengasse / Rotenhofgasse (Rotenhofgasse 80-84) dating from 1957-1958 comprises 261 dwellings. From spring 2022, soil-bound greening was introduced here in three zones of the estate. It is composed of climbing plants with aluminium grid trellises and an automatic irrigation system. To enhance acceptance of this measure, the tenants were involved in the project, given a say and comprehensively informed.

In the context of WieNeu+ and in co-ordination with Wiener Wohnen as well as on the basis of the Buchengasse greening project, the research and innovation lab GrünStattGrau was commissioned by the Division for Housing Research and International Relations of Municipal Department 50 (MA 50) – Housing Promotion and Arbitration Board for Legal Housing Matters with developing an extensive study concerning the cost of setting up and maintaining façade greening systems (including funding models and statutory framework conditions) as well as the experience made with predecessor projects implemented by GrünStattGrau. The goal lay in deriving recommendations for action.

Outcomes

Online and on-site interviews showed that 60% of the estate’s tenants consider façade greening to be important and that 46% of them want even more façade greening. However, 59% are unwilling to pay part of the related cost. Moreover, 76% would not want to participate in maintaining the greenery, which would in any case be impossible or at least difficult to implement because of liability issues.

It is the core mandate of Wiener Wohnen to safeguard affordable housing for tenants while taking account of social and economic aspects. This core mandate, which is regularly reviewed and evaluated by the Court of Audit and the City Council and follows the provisions of the Landlord and Tenant Act (MRG), lays down a narrow margin for interventions beyond the standard scope of maintenance work.

Especially where building refurbishment is concerned, targeted communication is very helpful. Well thought-out façade greening should also comprise technical solutions, such as suitable plants and trellises, appropriate irrigation and even the development of an emergency plan in case of technical defects. Overall, façade greening measures make a valuable contribution to the micro-climate and quality of life for residents.