After a dispute over a high-rise: start of construction for a controversial quarter

Created: 01/18/2022 05:44

By: Max Wochinger

Controversial construction project: The planned 42 meter high residential tower caused a dispute in Haar.

The construction work for the Aves Quarter is now in full swing.

© Gerald Fortsch

It's controversial, but now it's taking shape: construction has started for the Aves district on the B304, which includes a 42-metre-high tower.

Haar

– The Aves Quarter is coming: the construction work for the prestigious project in the middle of Haar is in full swing.

A residential and commercial complex, including a 42 meter high residential tower, is currently being built directly on Münchner Strasse (B 304).

The controversial building is expected to be completed in 2024.

The project was hotly debated in the community.

The major construction site at Münchner Strasse 24, on the corner of Jagdfeldring, cannot be overlooked.

Two cranes are circling over the area, 30 employees are currently working on the shell, says Andreas Fischer.

He is the manager of the project, the developer is KM Wohnbau from Haar.

123 apartments and eight commercial spaces

At the end of 2020, an old commercial building and a residential bungalow were demolished.

Some of the buildings stood there unused for many years.

Then, last year, the excavation: 21,000 cubic meters of gravel had to be excavated from the excavation pit.

The investor wants to build 123 apartments and eight commercial spaces here.

The gross floor area, i.e. the external dimensions of the building, measures 10,000 square meters.

The majority of the apartments are being built in a U-shaped structure around an inner courtyard.

"It is one of the few developments where..."

The residential and business district is in a lively neighborhood: Aldi, Edeka and Hagebaumarkt are within walking distance.

Restaurants, pharmacies and the Haarer cinema are in the area.

The quarter is part of a large plan for the south side of the B 304. Many more apartments are to be built here.

The special thing about the Aves district is the rental-ownership mix, says project manager Fischer.

"It's one of the few construction projects where rental apartments are being built on a large scale," he says.

60 percent of the residential and commercial parts would be rented out, the rest would be sold.

According to the project manager, the commercial space is "small in structure" and the proportion of office space is small.

It is not clear which shops will move into the quarter.

14 floors with three apartments per floor

The municipality was granted the right to occupy 16 apartments in the Aves district, for a period of 25 years.

The council flats are located on the lower floors of the quarter.

KM Wohnbau does not reveal how much the construction will cost.

Because of the enormous price increases during construction, the investor expects higher construction costs.

The centerpiece of the district is the residential tower: it comprises 14 floors with three apartments on each floor.

KM Wohnbau had already bought the large area for the construction of the tower in 2013.

The starting signal for the construction work was not given until 2021.

"It was politically controversial to build there," says Andreas Fischer.

“No one is seriously affected by the residential tower”

This was mainly due to the 42 meter high residential tower. The CSU in the Haar municipal council vehemently opposed the skyscraper. In 2020, the Christian Socialists had tried to prevent the residential tower with a motion in the municipal council. The Fischer family, which is behind KM Wohnbau, had opposed the CSU application in an open letter. The construction project would bring many benefits to the community, the letter said at the time. Ultimately, the CSU could not stop the construction of the high-rise building, with 12 to 9 votes, the then municipal council decided in favor of the building.

"Nobody will be seriously affected by the residential tower," assures project manager Fischer.

In order to prevent further surface sealing, one must build upwards.

"Not everyone sees it that way," he says.

One thing is clear to Fischer: there will be more skyscrapers in Haar in the future.

More news from Haar and the district of Munich can be found here.