Here comes the summer

The Lochau Lido is one of the most beautiful on Lake Constance. Between water and landscape, it has the appearance of having always been there.

In the spatial field between jetty and new mouth of the Kugel­beer­bach brook in the Austrian muni­ci­pa­lity of Lochau at the Lake of Cons­tance sits the flat, one-storey Lochau Lido buil­ding, right between lake and land­scape. Rest and acti­vity zones are kept close to the  buil­ding, leaving gene­rous areas for bathers. Long boun­dary walls along the cycle path give struc­ture to the surroun­ding space, defi­ning a safe, iden­ti­fiable area for parking bikes and guiding visi­tors to the widely roofed entrance area.

Lochau Lido’s wide, protec­tive roof, cove­ring various infra­struc­tural units, also serves as a gentle mediator between the building’s indoor and outdoor areas. Entrance area and shop/cafeteria form one unit, acces­sible from both street and lake side. The spacious terrace of the cafe­teria is sepa­rated from the lakes­hore by a slight diffe­rence in height with wall fencing that still keeps access barrier-free for both bathers and guests.

The laid-back presentation of construction and material characterizes the new building, appearing so natural.

Subtle, deli­cate archi­tec­tural features and the direct expres­sion of cons­truc­tion and mate­ria­lity shape Lochau Lido’s character. The accom­panying wall panels along the cycle path provide stabi­lity. A simple wooden buil­ding is posi­tioned in this frame, its light struc­ture remi­nis­cent of a summery arbour. The imme­diacy of expres­sion and its simpli­city give the buil­ding a summery, laid-back charm.

Tech­nical units are posi­tioned on the roof above the respec­tive room units, allo­wing for short distances and highly effi­cient opera­tion. Clad in a galva­nized steel mesh, the inte­grated tech­nical equip­ment takes a back seat, clea­ring the stage for a striking, iden­ti­fiable, emble­matic new orien­ta­tion point on the lake.

In connection with the architecture, which is so clear, the Lochau Lido is another attraction on Lake Constance.

When plan­ning a buil­ding that is used only in summer, the choice of mate­rial is obvious. And so is, in terms of consis­tency, the choice of its load-bearing struc­ture. A large, flat wooden panel as a roof, mounted on a layer of beams, supported by a central spine of small walls of solid cross-lami­nated timber and a wide down­stand beam. Then, slender outer columns, each with an equally slender down­stand beam. 

All tech­nical and elec­trical systems are placed in an addi­tional roof struc­ture, a light steel skeleton frame resting on the roof slab on some points. The aesthetic quali­ties of the timber cons­truc­tion mentioned above make any clad­ding unneces­sary.

Lochau Lido shows a very lean and thus highly econo­mical cons­truc­tion.