The planning phase of the Bahlingen apartment complex dates back all the way to 1999. At the time it was determined that the town accommodated the residential needs within the municipality of Bahlingen of all locals, with the exception of those of its senior citizens.

“Dwelling is Life” (German: “Wohnen ist Leben”) is the motto of this integrative residential model. A team of 60 nursing care institution staff members works at the complex. The building’s actual purpose is to create a living space the mobility-impaired individuals who live here find worthwhile in terms of their quality of life.

Of these residents, 32 live on the ground floor. Some of them require intensive nursing home care. The first floor and top floor provide homes to seniors in 18 handicapped accessible apartments and to families who have nursing-care dependent family members. A petting zoo composed of goats, sheep, rabbits and Guinea pigs is also located in the complex.

The building is energy independent (energy-self-sufficient). Hot tap water is generated in a strictly regenerative fashion using soil heat and a wood pellet stove. The nominal power output of the photovoltaic system is higher than the building’s total electricity grid connection level.

Another unique feature of the project is that it was funded based on the PPP (Public-Private-Partnership) model.

According to this funding model, private capital is generated at a low interest rate thanks to the provision of communal collateral. This makes it possible to finance such a complex. Given the fact that a private individual can implement such a project at a lower cost, this also generates new potential for the creation of community tasks. For this particular building, the municipality of Bahlingen brought in a specific start-up financing amount and the land parcel. The investor, on the other hand, is responsible for the financing of the entire construction project and the building maintenance for a period of 30 years.