The historic Schönau site in Wetzikon is now being used by Projekt Interim as a lively place for art, culture and small businesses. Where spindles once clattered, studios, rehearsal rooms and creative encounters are now being created. Until the planned site development, the area will remain a space full of history and new ideas.
Where history
meets ideas
The Schönau site in Wetzikon looks back on over 200 years of history and is now a lively place for creative temporary use thanks to Projekt Interim.
In 1823, Friedrich Nagel founded one of the first mechanical spinning mills in the region on the site. He even used stones from the east tower of his nearby castle for the construction. Schönau subsequently developed into an important location for the Zurich textile industry. Following a bankruptcy, the company Jacob & Andreas Bidermann took over the spinning mill in 1842, expanded it and protected it from flooding from the nearby Aa river with a massive dam.
Industrial work continued here until the 1990s – most recently with a focus on technical textiles. The spinning mill was then shut down in 1991.
Since 2014, Projekt Interim has been using the former factory site for a diverse and meaningful temporary use: artists, creative professionals, musicians, small businesses and cultural events are revitalising the old buildings.
Workshops, studios, rehearsal rooms, a children’s clothes shop and a summer bar with concerts – the Schönau site is now a place where history meets the present.
The owner, HIAG, plans to develop the site into a mixed residential and working neighbourhood in the long term. Until then, Projekt Interim will ensure that the site does not lie fallow, but continues to breathe: with life, ideas and people who appreciate the potential of Schönau.
