The reception building of Stadelhofen station was built in 1894 by Gustav Wülfke, a student of Gottfried Semper. As head of the structural engineering department, Wülfke designed various station buildings for the former Swiss Nordostbahn. The typology of the late classical building is based on the Tuscan country villas popular at the time.

In 1924, the building was extended by two axes and the summer waiting rooms at the side were removed.  In 1991, the reception building was extensively renovated by Arnold Amsler. Apart from the exterior masonry, no original substance was preserved. It was not until 2001 that the building was listed, in conjunction with the modern Passage of Santiago Calatrava.

Our task was to refurbish the façade according to the criteria of historical preservation. However, the color background presented itself very heterogeneous. In 1991, the plaster of the side wings had been chipped off and the stone of the middle risalit had been subsequently removed. Internal granite cladding had weakened the walls' ability to breathe. The original color scheme could no longer be reconstructed. Arnold Amsler had opted for very restrained blue tones. In cooperation with the department for preservation of historical monuments and the company Fontana & Fontana, we developed a colour concept that was considerably more similar to the earthy tones of the Semperian era. The side wings, which were extended in 1924, exhibited deliberately a stronger contrast and the relief of the damaged stones was optically corrected with a laser technique.

An important part of the project was the extension of the facade lighting from the main square to the side facades. Our concept followed the criteria of Plan Lumière. The free-standing building was to be perceived as a body both day and night. Non-standard lighting was removed and new pendant lights on the canopies define the space below. Improvised handrailings were replaced by elegant forged metal handrails that reference the formal language of the original building.

Client
Swiss Federal Railways SBB AG,
Real Estate Management Region East

Vulkanplatz 11, 8048 Zurich

Services Baumgartner + Partner
Overall management, architecture, construction management

Team of planners and specialists
Lighting design: Vogt Partner, Winterthur
Specialist natural stone: Gregor Frehner AG, Winterthur
Specialist plastering: BWS Laboratory AG, Winterthur
Specialist painting work: Fontana & Fontana AG, Rapperswil-Jona

Implementation: August 2018 to November 2018 
Construction costs (BKP 1-5): CHF 1.1 million