<Schönwil und Oberrain in Meggen, Meggen, 2011–2012

On Gotthardstrasse in Meggen, two villas stand on terraces framed by stone, surrounded by park-like gardens and buildings for the cultivation of the adjacent fields. Four new residential buildings by Diener & Diener are embedded in this lakeside landscape.

The first two already form an ensemble with the Villa Schönwil, in which they take the place of the service buildings. The architectural language incorporates typical features of the service buildings, with the new residential buildings contrasting with the classicism of the villa. Access to the two buildings, which are slightly offset from each other, is via a base that serves as a common hall for vehicles inside. For natural ventilation, the hall has large openings towards the park, which are covered by the façade cladding. The cladding is made of staggered narrow planks with regular joints. The wood is painted in light shades of grey to create a colour reference to the villa. Each floor contains two or three apartments of 2.5, 3.5 or 4.5 rooms. The bedrooms are on the north side, facing the fields, while the living rooms and loggias are on the south side, facing the mountains. Sliding doors between the bedrooms and living areas create a fluid relationship with the stunning outdoor space that surrounds the apartments. The houses on Oberrain also adopt these principles but differ in their materialisation with plaster and wooden shingles. The residential buildings are accessed via the "Oberrain Platz" located in front of them, which serves as a common lounge and meeting area and also forms the ceiling of the car park. The outbuildings flanking Oberrain 2 articulate the transition to the green. To the rear and east of the development, there is a spacious meadow between the new buildings and the neighbourhood. The internal organisation of the flats follows the orientation of the buildings on both sides. Oberrain 4 is characterised by an attic storey and roof terraces. There are fourteen flats in the simple, cubic building Oberrain 3, another six in Oberrain 4 and a total of three 2.5-room studios, fourteen 3.5-room and three 4.5-room flats on the site. The buildings were Minergie-certified.