1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Zürich
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Belvoirpark
Short description of the intervention
The Belvoirpark has its origins in the 19th century and is one of the oldest landscaped gardens in the region. Set on a beautiful location close to the lake with views of the city and the mountains, the Belvoirpark has retained its specific topography with large level differences and exotic trees. Since the twenties, Gastrosuisse operates here a Hotel Management School with an upscale, publicly accessible restaurant. The former school building was spatially and functionally not integrated into the parkA huge transformation of the Belvoirpark area was done to make the park more green from 2004 – 2015. The transformation of the area around the new construction of the replacement building allowed a reappraisal of the previous situation. (Ref 1)
Address

Seestrasse 125
8002 Zürich
Switzerland

Location
Point location, which indicates where the NBS takes place
Total area
2000.00m²
NBS area
2000.00m²
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Public Greenspace Area
Website of the intervention
https://www.belvoirpark.ch/
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
unknown
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2004
End date of the intervention
2015
Present stage of the intervention
Completed
Goals of the intervention
• Revive the glory of the park.
• Protect the habitats for the species present within the park.
• Increase aesthetics.
• Introduce 21st-century facilities (walking trails, playground, an underpass to access Zurisee) (Ref 1).
Quantitative targets
Unknown
Monitoring indicators defined
Number of species whose habitats have been protected, number of tourists per year (Ref 1, 2)
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Habitat and biodiversity restoration
Green space creation and/or management
Environmental quality
Air quality improvement
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Enabling opportunities for physical activity
What types of restoration goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention?
Species-focused
What activities are implemented to realize the restoration goals and targets?
Restore species (native, endangered, or unspecified)
Restore native species
Implementation activities
Areas that did not serve the transport and delivery services were planted in accordance with park trees, which occur partly as groups, partly as a multi-stemmed specimen. To the east to the park, a wide path along the building is created, which can be supplemented in the north and south to a belt walk. Between the best walk and the Iris garden the partially existing hedges were extended or renewed. Inside the hedge body a beech tree was replanted, which will complement the long-term parking backdrop of large trees. At the entrance to the park and the school a historical and translocated fence (by the art nouveau artist Berlepsch-Valandas) with natural stone base and pedestals continues the theme and protected pattern of villas with front gardens along the Seestrasse. (Ref 1)
Type of NBS project
Creation of new green areas
Maintenance and management of urban nature
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Parks and urban forests
Large urban parks or forests
Vegetation Type
Grass
Shrubs
Trees
Garden beds
Please specify how many trees were planted
Unknown
Amenities offered by the NBS
Benches and drinking water stations
Playgrounds
Complementing infrastructure (bathrooms, café)
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Regulating services
Local climate regulation (temperature reduction)
Air quality regulation
Carbon storage/sequestration
Pollination
Habitat and supporting services
Habitats for species
Maintenance of genetic diversity
Cultural services
Aesthetic appreciation
Recreation
Scale
Spatial scale
Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Citizens or community groups
Governance
Governance arrangements
Co-governance with government and non-government actors
Non-government actors
Private sector/Corporate/Business
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
The project was a collaboration among Gastrosuisse Zurich: association connected with Belvoirpark, VOGT Architect, and Stadt Zurich: leader of the project. (Ref 1)
Key actors - initiating organization
Private sector/corporate actor/company
Land owners
Private sector or company
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
Local government/municipality
Private sector/corporate actor/company
Private foundation/trust
Land owners
Private sector or company
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an Regional Directive/Strategy
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan
Yes
Please specify the "local regulation/strategy/plan"
Green Space Policy for the city of Zurich: to maintain urban green spaces (Ref 3)
Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Mandatory (based on policy)
Intervention is mandatory
Spatial planning law
Environmental regulation
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
Green Space Policy for the city of Zurich: to maintain urban green spaces (Ref 3)
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
If there is a relevant strategy or plan, please specify the theme / type of the plan.
City specific green space strategy or plan
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
Association des Horticulteurs de la Suisse: funding on recreation and seedlings (Ref 3), Gastrosuisse Zurich: for infrastructural construction, and Stadt Zurich: leader of the project. (Ref 1)
Co-finance for NBS
Yes
Co-financing governance arrangements
Unknown
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
Unknown
Financing
Total cost
Unknown
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
Unknown
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
Unknown
Source(s) of funding
Public regional budget
Private Foundation/Trust
Type of fund(s) used
Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Non-financial contribution
Yes
Type of non-financial contribution
Provision of land
Provision of goods
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
Public authorities (e.g. land, utility services)
Business models
Green densification model
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Public actor (e.g. municipality)
Type of innovation
Technological
Infrastructural innovation
Please specify technological innovation
The aim of the intervention was the introduce 21st century facilities (walking trails, playground, an underpass to access Zurisee). To the east of the park, a wide path along the building is created, which can be supplemented in the north and south to a beltwalk. Also, this connects to the small water ponds inside the park. Between the beltwalk and the Iris garden the partially existing hedges were extended or renewed. (Ref 1)
Novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Climate change
Lowered local temperature
Green space and habitat
Reduced biodiversity loss
Description of environmental benefits
1. The Iris Garden in the Belvoir Park delights visitors with its high biodiversity. Over 120 species are represented here. They bloom from March to July. There are wild forms and varieties of swamp iris at the pond.
2. The park hosts old trees, which contribute to controlling the local temperature and keeping the place cool in the scorching summer heat. (Ref 1).
Economic impacts
Attraction of business and investment
Description of economic benefits
The place hosts a business school and a restaurant. (Ref 3, 4)
Social and cultural impacts
Social justice and cohesion
Increased opportunities for social interaction
Cultural heritage and sense of place
Protection of natural heritage
Protection of historic and cultural landscape / infrastructure
Description of social and cultural benefits
1. The Iris Garden in the Belvoir Park aims to delight visitors with its splendour of form and colour.
2. The location of the park (close to the train station) allows some foreign tourists.
3. The area of the park and the mansion and associated buildings are listed in the Swiss inventory of the cultural property of national and regional significance as a Class A object of national importance.
4. To the east to the park, a wide path along with the building supplements in the north and south to a belt walk. (Ref 4)
Type of reported impacts
Achieved impacts
Indicators
Number of habitats protected, number of tourists per year, number of new tree species planted, area covered with newly planted trees and shrubs (Ref 1,2)
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Analysis of specific impact categories
Environmental justice: The implementation of the NBS project resulted in ...
Improved access to green and/or blue spaces
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
Unknown as of August, 2020.
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
No evidence in public records
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Unknown
Evidence for use of assessment
Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
Unknown
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Yes
Mode(s) of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Online Forum
Please specify other modes of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Citizens are participating in the assessment through the online forum where they can provide their comments on the project. Some of these could be found in the Tripadvisor web page. (Ref 2)
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
Stadt-Zurich
List of references
1. Vogt Architect (no date) Belvoir Park, Zurich, Switzerland. VOGT case studies. Available at: http://www.vogt-la.com/en/project/belvoirpark-zurich. Accessed on 3rd August, 2020.
2. Tripadvisor (no date) Belvoir Park, Zurich Switzerland. Overview. Tripadvisor. Available at: https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g188113-d196035-Reviews-Belvoir_Park-Zurich.html. Accessed on 3rd August, 2020.
3. Stadt-Zurich (no date) Belvoirpark. Stadt-Zurich. Available at: https://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/ted/de/index/gsz/natur-erleben/park-und-gruenanlagen/parkanlagen-von-az/belvoirpark.html. Accessed on 3rd August, 2020.
4. Zurich Tourism (no date) Belvoir Park- a historic park. Available at: https://www.zuerich.com/en/visit/nature/belvoir-park. Accessed on 3rd August, 2020.
5. Zurich Tourism (no date) Belvoir park. Available at: https://www.zuerich.com/en/visit/nature/belvoir-park. Accessed on 3rd August, 2020.
Comments and notes
Comments
I couldn't find some information especially on the policy and assessment part. I contacted the project designer for this and yet to receive the information.
Public Images
Belvoir Park
Zurich Tourism
https://www.zuerich.com/en/visit/nature/belvoir-park