Master's Thesis AR · Summer Semester 2018 · Laura Haller 

Gossensass is the principal settlement of the municipality of Brenner in South Tyrol. Its townscape is characterised by a heterogeneous built fabric. Historic miners' houses, grand hotels, and former military barracks bear witness to the village's eventful history.

The Brenner Road, which runs through the centre of the village, has long been one of the key drivers of Gossensass's development. Numerous shops and inns along the road reflect its historic importance as a transport and trade route. In recent years, however, this area has undergone significant change. Structural change in rural areas, combined with steadily increasing traffic volumes, has resulted in widespread commercial vacancies and a gradual decline in the quality of the streetscape. Today, Gossensass finds itself between two contrasting realities: a growing residential community with ongoing new development and an ageing village centre along the Brenner Road, where many buildings and their functions no longer meet contemporary needs.

As through traffic is perceived as a major burden by local residents, a bypass is currently being planned. The thesis uses this infrastructure project as the starting point for developing a future scenario for Gossensass.

Based on a detailed spatial analysis, the thesis develops guiding principles for the village's future development, linking the themes of housing, employment, community, and mobility. A series of targeted spatial interventions creates new synergies between these fields of action. The adaptive reuse of existing buildings—and in particular the activation of vacant properties—plays a central role. New buildings are proposed only at selected locations and for specific uses. The project demonstrates how the planned bypass can become a catalyst for transforming Gossensass into a sustainable village that offers future-oriented forms of living and working, integrates new mobility concepts, and continues to foster a vibrant community life.