Living in the Kabelwerk — what is it like?
Short and honest: you live on the grounds of the former cable factory in Meidling, in a 2000s neighbourhood of around 3,500 people with its own cultural centre and the U6 a few minutes’ walk away. The trade-off: the neighbourhood is densely built, and the location is not quiet.
Living Snapshot — the area in numbers
The Kabelwerk is not a Grätzl of its own in Vienna Living Map’s data — what is measured are the two nearest, Erlaa and Meidlinger Hauptstraße, about a kilometre away. Orientation for the surroundings, not a verdict on individual flats.
What shapes daily life
The Kabelfabrik und Drahtindustrie AG produced here on Oswaldgasse in Altmannsdorf from 1904; after the takeover by Siemens, production closed in 1997. Before construction began, the empty works were used for culture. Parts were demolished in 2002 and 2003, and from 2004 housing went up on around 68,000 square metres to the concept of rainer pirker architeXture and Florian Haydn; from 2005 it was occupied section by section.
Subsidies went to 937 flats — 575 rental and 174 owner-occupied —, plus 188 student apartments and around 30 shop units. Around 3,500 people live here. Since 2009 the Palais Kabelwerk has been the neighbourhood’s cultural centre, today with the Theater am Werk; since 2011 there has been a geriatric centre and the Miep-Gies-Park by the U6.
What works surprisingly well
The U6 is close: Tscherttegasse station is about four minutes on foot from the Palais Kabelwerk, and it runs without changing to Meidling station (Philadelphiabrücke) and the Westbahnhof.
The site had culture before it had housing: performances took place in the empty halls, and since 2009 the Palais Kabelwerk has stood for that, today with the Theater am Werk — a cultural centre in the neighbourhood itself.
What you consciously accept
It is dense: 937 flats, a student residence, shops, a geriatric centre and a park on around 6.8 hectares. It was built with subsidies — if you are looking for a large, freely financed flat, you will find little here.
The location is not quiet: the two nearest Grätzl reach 6.1 (Erlaa) and 5.5 (Meidlinger Hauptstraße) on quiet, both below the Vienna median of 6.8.
20 minutes of everyday life
Four stops, one evening after work — every observation is true exactly here, not everywhere.
- U6 Tscherttegasse 18:00
Getting off a few minutes from the neighbourhood. The Miep-Gies-Park lies along the line. - Miep-Gies-Park 18:04
Named in 2011 after Miep Gies, who was born in Vienna and hid Anne Frank’s family in Amsterdam. - Palais Kabelwerk 18:08
On Oswaldgasse, since 2009 the neighbourhood’s cultural centre, today with the Theater am Werk. - Oswaldgasse 33 18:12
The factory’s old address: from 1904 to 1997 cable and wire were made here; today housing stands on the grounds.
Who is it for?
For anyone who wants subsidised housing close to the U6, with culture and a park in the neighbourhood — families, students, older people. If you are looking for Altbau, a large freely financed flat or a lot of quiet, you will not find it here.
Check the light before you accept
The Kabelwerk is densely built: whether a flat faces a narrow courtyard or the park makes hours of difference in light. 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. The preview for one room is free. To the light check →
Open this place in Vienna Living Map →Meidlinger Hauptstraße · Erlaa · Alt-Erlaa housing estate · Meidling district · Karl-Marx-Hof · Arsenal
Method & sources
History and figures: Wikipedia, article “Kabelwerk Wien-Meidling”; press releases on the groundbreaking (OTS, 16 June 2005) and the first move-ins (OTS, 10 January 2006), read on 30 September 2026. The Living Snapshot shows the scores of the nearest Grätzl Erlaa and Meidlinger Hauptstraße 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 Palais Kabelwerk × 1.3 at 80 metres per minute.
Frequently asked
What was the Kabelwerk?
A cable factory: the Kabelfabrik und Drahtindustrie AG produced on Oswaldgasse in Altmannsdorf from 1904; after the takeover by Siemens, production closed in 1997. Since 2004 housing has been built on the grounds, and people have been moving in since 2005.
How many flats are there in the Kabelwerk?
937 subsidised flats — 575 rental and 174 owner-occupied —, plus 188 subsidised student apartments and around 30 shop units. Around 3,500 people live here.
How is the Kabelwerk connected?
By the U6: Tscherttegasse station is about four minutes on foot from the Palais Kabelwerk; it runs without changing to Meidling station (Philadelphiabrücke) and the Westbahnhof.
What is the Palais Kabelwerk?
The neighbourhood’s cultural centre on Oswaldgasse, completed in 2009 — today with the Theater am Werk.
What is it like to live in the Kabelwerk?
Subsidised, dense and close to the U6, with culture and a park in the neighbourhood. The nearest Grätzl reach Living Scores of 88 (Erlaa) and 73 (Meidlinger Hauptstraße); on quiet, both are below the Vienna median.