Living in Biotope City — what is it like?
Short and honest: you live in a quarter completed in 2021 whose green was built in — green roofs, planted façades, meadows and around 250 trees — at the edge of the Wienerberg recreation area. The trade-off: the U-Bahn is far away, and day to day you take the bus.
Living Snapshot — the area in numbers
Biotope City is not a Grätzl of its own in Vienna Living Map’s data — what is measured is the Wienerberg Grätzl, about 200 metres away. Orientation for the surroundings, not a verdict on individual flats.
What shapes daily life
Biotope City lies in the 10th district on a former factory site on Triester Straße, where the city meets the Wienerberg recreation area. The idea comes from the urban planner Helga Fassbinder and the Biotope City Foundation: a city that deliberately puts the forces of nature to work. The quarter was completed in 2021, built by several developers, among them Wien Süd, GESIBA, BUWOG, ARWAG and Soravia.
There are around 980 flats here, 400 of them subsidised and 200 SMART flats, plus a school, a kindergarten and around 2,000 square metres of playgrounds for children and teenagers.
What works surprisingly well
The green is built, not just planned: around 250 trees, 8,900 square metres of meadow, 13,600 square metres of green roof and 2,200 square metres of planted façades, plus 600 square metres of community gardens and 3,850 square metres of ground-floor gardens.
Comparatively cool: in the neighbouring Wienerberg Grätzl, the modelled summer-heat index is 43 out of 100, below the Vienna median of 56, and the recreation area begins right next door.
What you consciously accept
The U-Bahn is far: the U6 station Meidling is about 25 minutes on foot away. Day to day you take the bus — 65A and 7B stop at Hertha-Firnberg-Straße, the 15A at Clemens-Holzmeister-Straße, each about four minutes on foot.
It is not only a residential area: the quarter includes a hotel with 152 rooms and around 20,000 square metres of commercial space, and Triester Straße runs along one side.
20 minutes of everyday life
Three stops, one evening after work — every observation is true exactly here, not everywhere.
- Hertha-Firnberg-Straße 18:00
Buses 65A and 7B stop here, about four minutes on foot from the quarter. - The courtyards 18:05
Meadows, trees and community gardens between the buildings, planted façades above. - Wienerberg 18:10
The recreation area begins right next door.
Who is it for?
For anyone who wants to live new and green, with a school and kindergarten in the quarter and the Wienerberg at the door — families and people looking for subsidised housing. If you want the U-Bahn at the door, Altbau or an established Grätzl with Beisln, you will not find it here.
Check the light before you accept
Lots of green also means shade: trees and planted façades cool, but take light lower down. The light check calculates, for the address and floor, when direct sun reaches the windows — on 21 June and 21 December, with the official heights of the neighbouring buildings; it shows trees but does not count them as casting shade. The preview for one room is free. To the light check →
Open this place in Vienna Living Map →Wienerberg · Cool living in Vienna · Living in the Kabelwerk · Favoriten district · Karl-Marx-Hof · Arsenal
Method & sources
Flats, location, green and facilities: City of Vienna, “Biotope City Wienerberg” (urban planning); completion, developers, idea, hotel and commercial space: IBA_Wien, “Biotope City Wienerberg” project page (read on 30 September 2026). Lines from the Wiener Linien timetable (GTFS). The Living Snapshot shows the score of the Wienerberg Grätzl from open data (City of Vienna OGD, OpenStreetMap, Wiener Linien, Statistics Austria) — orientation, not a rating of individual flats. Walking minutes: straight line from the middle of the quarter × 1.3 at 80 metres per minute. The summer-heat index is a modelled value, not a measured temperature.
Frequently asked
How many flats does Biotope City have?
Around 980, 400 of them subsidised and 200 SMART flats. There are also a school, a kindergarten and around 2,000 square metres of playgrounds.
What is special about Biotope City?
The green is part of the building: around 250 trees, 8,900 square metres of meadow, 13,600 square metres of green roof and 2,200 square metres of planted façades. The idea comes from the urban planner Helga Fassbinder and the Biotope City Foundation.
When was Biotope City completed?
In 2021 — on a former factory site on Triester Straße, where the city meets the Wienerberg recreation area.
How is Biotope City connected?
By bus: 65A and 7B stop at Hertha-Firnberg-Straße, the 15A at Clemens-Holzmeister-Straße, each about four minutes on foot. The U6 station Meidling is about 25 minutes on foot away.
What is it like to live in Biotope City?
New, green and comparatively cool, with a school and kindergarten in the quarter — but without a U-Bahn within walking distance. The neighbouring Wienerberg Grätzl reaches a Living Score of 85.