ᐅ Building a house on a narrow lot? There is already a three-family house on the property.

I’m not sure if that is possible without further measures. Basically, I would initially say no, because all the windows would have to be removed and some rooms wouldn’t receive any natural light at all.

bentek schrieb:
I just checked again. Two houses very close by (2-3 houses away) actually have houses built behind them.
I hope I can use this as an argument with the building authority.

Check the zoning plan that applies to your property.

The blue lines mark the current building zones. As you can see, the actual development on some lots deviates from this, which suggests that these buildings predate the zoning plan from 1968. These deviations are very likely protected by grandfather rights, as you can observe on lots 679 and 680, which you are probably referring to, where setback distances and other regulations are not met. Under current planning regulations, such constructions would probably no longer be approved there.

The same applies even to your own property — your house extends beyond the building zone to the north (which is somewhat unusual, since according to your information it was built in 1972, four years after the zoning plan was established). If you were to demolish your house, you would not be allowed to rebuild it in the same spot but would have to conform to the building zone and move the house southwards.

Well, asking doesn’t cost anything in the end, but I see better chances in uniting all property owners and presenting the densification of developed land as an attractive option to the city planners.

When making your case, it helps to think like a city planner: if they issued a building permit that is only very, very slightly legally contestable, they would have a lawsuit on their desk faster than you can spell your name. They have no interest in that — it only costs money, nerves, and yields no benefit.

Therefore, all neighbors and owners first need to be convinced that this is a worthwhile idea. Only then does it make sense for the city to invest effort — otherwise, it does not.

Best regards,
Dirk Grafe

In case neighbor approval is truly required, I see no chance.

IMHO, if you don’t involve your neighbors, you can forget about your building plans.

The hope has meanwhile faded as well.
However, I have another question/consideration.

The lower apartment in the three-family complex is on the ground floor. The basement is a daylight basement (souterrain) and it is possible to access the three basement rooms from the stairwell.

My question is: In principle, is it possible to build a staircase from the lower apartment that leads directly into the basement? It would basically create a maisonette apartment. The basement rooms are well maintained and also suitable for living.
I imagine the whole thing to be complicated and difficult, but is this theoretically possible?

Regards

On one hand, I assume these are concrete ceilings/floors. In that case, you generally cannot add a stairwell opening afterward. If it is wood, it might be more feasible, but then the structural aspects must also be considered.

However:

bentek schrieb:
Because the basement rooms are very well maintained and also habitable.

these are likely basement rooms, not living spaces with the required room height, secondary emergency exit, or adequate lighting (well-maintained basement rooms are not equivalent to living spaces). Look up “living space” on Wiki to get an idea of the requirements. You cannot simply convert a basement room into a bedroom.

Edit: But maybe your basement meets all the requirements? I overlooked the term souterrain.