Zurich Glattpark/Opfikon Development
Core idea
High-density district near airport
Why it matters
Transit-adjacent new urban quarter
Description
A planned urban extension on the Glattpark site in Opfikon, on Zurich's northern edge near the airport, developed from the 2000s by the municipality with private developers. The plan laid out a compact grid of mid- and high-rise housing and offices around a large central park and lake, connected to Zurich and the airport by the Glattal light-rail line.
Significance
Glattpark is representative of the polycentric urbanisation of the Glattal corridor, where Swiss growth has been channelled into dense, tram-served new quarters outside the traditional city rather than dispersed sprawl. It is often discussed as a test of whether transit-adjacent greenfield districts can acquire genuine urbanity, and it illustrates the fine-grained municipal cooperation that characterises planning in the Zurich metropolitan region.
What shaped it
- Transit-oriented development (TOD) (1993)
- The jet airliner and the airport (Comet 1952; Boeing 707 1958)
- Floor Area Ratio (FAR/FSI) (20th c.)