Menu ETH
Chair of Architecture and Urban Design
Asst. Prof. Dr. Alex Lehnerer
Grand Urban Rules

Design Rules and Design With Rules!

Cities as cultural products are neither ‘built’ nor ‘planned,’ at best they are guided and steered in a certain direction. Therefore, rules and regulations are one of the few tools that are actually suitable to guide future development within such collective and complex urban settings.

We strongly believe that the field of (urban) design should not simply adhere to these standards as some neutrally existing context but should actively engage in discussing them in order to make them subject to design as well. read more

Office for urban regulation

5-Story Rule of Paris

Paris

Buildings cannot be taller than the height residents and users are prepared to climb using stairs. For buildings without elevators, this threshold has been reached at a height of five stories.

Rule category

Motivation
Managing Bulk: basic stipulations regarding the object's form and bulk
The Kind of Rule
Rule that works as reference, ratio, or dependency.
Rule that is NOT related to any preconceived zone or area.
Rule that stipulates an upper limit.
Domain
Rule that has a strong influence on urban density and its distribution.
Rule that regulates building heights.
Scale
Plot/Block Rule: Rule that relates to the scale of a city block or plot.