Vienna officials rezone apartment building for shelter use

The city of Vienna reclassified 30 of 58 apartments in a building at Paulusgasse 5 as shelter spaces.

The city authorities approved the conversion in May after the property faced scrutiny for a year of residents living without hot water or high-voltage electricity. The building police department confirmed that the application met legal requirements because it was submitted in February, before the city tightened regulations for shelter conversions.

Under current rules, the city now requires at least 80 percent of usable space to remain for residential use. A spokesperson for the building police department says the new laws would have allowed 45 percent less space to be used for shelters at this location and would have required a separate street entrance. Workers are currently installing a power-based heating solution to provide warmth and hot water to the building.

The building police department says these construction works should finish by mid-November. The city plans to replace this temporary setup with a central heat pump system later.