Susanne Szentkuti, urban planner
Together with Florian Kühne, city architect, she is the architect of Thun's urban development as co-head of the planning department. In her endeavour to find a harmonious balance between preservation and innovation, she focuses on high-quality inner city development that strengthens Thun's character and at the same time opens up space for new usage concepts. With current major projects ranging from public spaces to co-operative housing, Thun reflects a high quality of life and attractiveness.
You are an urban planner and co-head of the City of Thun’s planning department.
What are your core tasks?
Urban planning lays the foundations for high-quality inner-city development in the city of Thun. In doing so, we want to further strengthen the existing qualities of Thun as a place to live and work and preserve specific identities. At the same time, space is to be created for new uses so that Thun can continue to position itself as an attractive place to live and work in the future. In addition to carefully coordinating settlement development with current and future mobility, it is particularly important to preserve and connect our valuable landscape areas and qualities.
What are your biggest challenges at the moment?
We are required to harmonise the diverse and numerous demands on the limited space available as well as possible while always keeping the public interest in mind. It is not always possible to fulfil all individual interests to the maximum. One of the greatest challenges today is to sound out and communicate the diverse needs within the framework of carefully designed processes and with the appropriate involvement of stakeholders and the population. At the same time, this makes urban planning incredibly exciting. Equally important is a strong focus on high-quality public spaces and open spaces that can be used in a variety of ways. These are becoming increasingly important as inner city development progresses and we should learn to think about the city from the open spaces and not primarily from the buildings.
What are you doing for site development?
With the local planning revision (revision of the building and zoning regulations), which should soon be approved by the canton, we are creating the basis for a more efficient use of land, whether in residential, mixed or working areas. Mixed-use areas in particular should increasingly be able to accommodate an attractive mix of living, working, services, amenities and leisure. By strengthening other central, well-developed locations (in addition to Thun city centre) such as Thun South, Thun North or along Gwattstrasse, additional and attractive space can be created for existing and new companies. The two cantonal development centres ESP Bahnhof and ESP Thun Nord should also not be forgotten. Thanks to their location, their current and future function as multimodal transport hubs and the areas that can be transformed, both areas have enormous potential for jobs and contemporary housing.
What are currently the most important construction projects in Thun?
The list is – fortunately – long! We are working together with various landowners and external partners on very exciting projects that are important for Thun’s development. Some of these are profiled in this issue of immoinvest. To name just a few, some of them are significant;
- the Thun railway station ESP
- the Thun North ESP
- the Siegenthalergut
- the Hoffmatte
- the Bostudenzelg
- the Freistatt
- the Bernstrasse project
- the Gewerbestrasse project
These attractive and lively new urban building blocks make an important contribution to the urgently needed housing supply.
Do you still have development sites available for the future?
With Siegenthalergut and Bostudenzelg, we will be able to develop two of the last remaining undeveloped areas in the settlement area in the foreseeable future. Further developments will increasingly focus on the transformation and further development of existing areas, which will be developed as part of special utilisation planning. In addition to those already mentioned, the Bahnhof West area and Gwattstrasse are particularly worthy of mention here. The Schönau West area, which is mainly characterised by cooperative housing estates, is also worth mentioning.
Where does Thun stand in terms of mobility?
Thun railway station is the region’s transport hub. Thanks to the further development and redesign of the railway station ESP, we are ensuring the efficiency of this hub for the next generation. At the same time, a new S-Bahn stop will be opened in the Thun North ESP in 2032, which, as a new mobility hub, will not only provide optimal access to this new part of the city but, together with a new tangential bus route, will optimally connect the Steffisburg – Thun North – Thun West and Thun South areas and thus also relieve the station. The city of Thun already has a dense bus network, which will be further optimised in the coming years. In addition, new attractive connections for cyclists and pedestrians will be created over the next few years based on the city’s overall transport concept.
What makes Thun an attractive place to live?
The quality of life is very high and you can find everything you need in a small area. The city centre and residential areas are within easy reach. Thun is therefore already very close to the so-called 15-minute city centre. Thun offers a very diverse range of cultural, leisure and amenities. The town is very green and surrounded by attractive recreational areas. And from Thun, you can be in Bern, the Oberland, Valais or even Italy in no time at all!
With the local planning revision and the various ongoing site developments, we are also creating the basis for a diverse, attractive and contemporary residential offering over the next few years. This will ensure that everyone who wants to stay in Thun or come to Thun will find a suitable place to live in our attractive town.
What is the situation regarding vacant housing in Thun?
Thun has one of the lowest vacancy rates in Switzerland (0.09). This shows that Thun is a very attractive place to live. At the same time, we need to expand the housing supply as quickly as possible. With the local planning revision and projects such as Hoffmatte, Siegenthalergut and Bostudenzelg, we are making good progress together with our external partners. The municipal council’s Housing Strategy 2030 and the STEK 2035 urban development concept form the strategic basis for this. The aim is to create a diverse range of housing that appeals to all generations and includes a wide variety of housing types.
Is there affordable housing in Thun?
Thun has a long tradition of cooperative housing construction. Co-operatives and other non-profit housing developers make an important contribution to a diverse and affordable housing supply by being committed to the principle of cost-based renting. Currently, the proportion of cooperative flats is 10.4 %. This is set to increase continuously over the next few years. With projects such as Freistatt, Bostudenzelg and Siegenthalergut, the city can directly promote these forms of housing by granting building rights for land to non-profit housing developers. It also supports the cooperatives in the renovation and further development of their existing housing estates.
Where do you see Thun in 30 years’ time?
Thun will still be recognisable as Thun. With its different neighbourhood identities, the strong greenery and its lively city centre, which is directly connected to the centrally located railway station district – a diverse, attractive place where a wide variety of uses come together. In the north of the city, people get off the S-Bahn and find themselves in a new urban quarter that combines living, working, leisure, culture and local recreation. All of this is still surrounded by an intact and biodiverse landscape. A city that is worth living and working in.