Too Ordinary To Be Another Case: Shifting from Demolition to Reclaiming the Material and Associative Substance of the BlueFactory

Located in the heart of Fribourg, the former Cardinal brewery site is being redeveloped into the BlueFactory, a technological park that aims to bring together business, research and culture. However, the site’s transformation is driven by a development policy that prioritizes demolition over preservation, targeting what is deemed ordinary heritage. As a result, cultural and associative actors are displaced, and the site’s uses become increasingly homogenized. Despite its aspirations to serve as a model, the construction of the Smart Living Lab research building follows this same approach, beginning with the demolition of Annexe 2—a former administrative building of the brewery. My project explores an alternative to this demolition by highlighting the potential of the existing built substance and the role of the site’s associative actors. By hosting the community center, the bicycle workshop and the independent radio station, the ground floor becomes the interface between the research program and the associative ecosystem, allowing the intervention to build upon existing networks of tenants to anchor the building within its urban context. Workspace clusters are organized according to acoustic and visual parameters, and partitioned with mobile devices that allow research teams to actively adapt their environment to evolving spatial needs. By valuing the site’s existing resources, the project proposes a renewed development narrative grounded in intersecting programmatic spaces that highlight the synergies and interdependencies between researchers and Fribourg’s associative fabric.