From Cellar to Shelter: Adaptive Reuse of a Former Wine Storage by Esch Sintzel Architekten

In the heart of Basel's Lysbüchel neighborhood, Swiss firm Esch Sintzel Architekten has transformed a massive former Coop wine storage warehouse into an expansive residential complex. This award-worthy adaptive reuse project reimagines industrial heritage as vibrant urban living space—anchored by monumental existing concrete columns that form the expressive and structural backbone of the design.

Adaptive Reuse with Monumental Integrity

The massive columns of the former warehouse are more than just remnants of a past era—they serve as spatial protagonists and storytelling elements. In a radical reinterpretation of housing typology, Esch Sintzel Architekten made a decisive choice to retain, expose, and celebrate these powerful vertical elements, allowing them to shape the architectural narrative.

In the new apartments—ranging from 1.5-room studios to generous 7.5-room family units—these columns interrupt, define, and dramatize interior spaces. Rather than diminishing them, the architects embraced their monumentality, crafting homes where industrial memory becomes part of the daily domestic experience.

A City Within the Building

A key conceptual feature of the project is the introduction of two “rues intérieures”, or internal streets, that run lengthwise through the building. These dynamic circulation spaces do more than simply connect stairwells and communal facilities—they structure an urban microcosm within the former industrial shell. This internal infrastructure promotes social interaction while allowing for varied apartment typologies suited to a broad demographic.

Access routes, community spaces, laundry rooms, and common amenities all converge along these inner streets. On the mezzanine level, these routes transition into broad entrance halls accessed via stairs and ramps, enhancing accessibility and fluidity between private and public zones.

Ground-Level Activation and Social Integration

At ground level, the architects activated the ends of the building with commercial units and a café, reintroducing the structure to its urban surroundings. This mixed-use approach enhances street life and encourages interaction between residents and the broader neighborhood. A communal roof terrace and shared community room offer additional layers of social and spatial connectivity.

Sustainability as Structure

This conversion doesn’t only reuse the visible bones of the building—it makes an impactful ecological statement. By preserving and repurposing the existing structure, the project saved 42% of the building's grey energy, dramatically reducing the environmental cost of new construction. Further supporting its energy efficiency, the building incorporates photovoltaic systems and a groundwater heat pump, achieving nearly two-thirds energy self-sufficiency.

A Blueprint for Circular Architecture

Esch Sintzel Architekten’s transformation of this former wine warehouse into a lively, inclusive, and ecologically conscious housing complex demonstrates the untapped potential of adaptive reuse in urban regeneration. By blending architectural memory with future-ready living, the project offers a blueprint for sustainable, socially connected, and spatially expressive housing in the 21st century.

All Photographs are works of Paola Corsini, Philip Heckhausen