Quartierverein Klosterzelg-Reutenen

Quartierverein Klosterzelg-Reutenen (QVKR) is a neighbourhood association (Quartierverein) based in Windisch, in the Swiss canton of Aargau. It represents the residents of the Klosterzelg and Reutenen districts, which lie west of the old Königsfelden monastery and the former village of Oberburg. The association was founded in 1911, making it one of the older neighbourhood associations in Switzerland. Its first president was the municipal clerk Hans Häfeli, and its early members were mostly railway workers employed at nearby Brugg station. The association's purpose is to foster community life in the district and to advocate for the concerns of its residents. It aims for a liveable and vibrant neighbourhood and seeks to balance the various interests of land use. It is politically neutral and committed solely to neighbourhood interests. Around 150 families, couples and individuals from the Klosterzelg-Reutenen district are members. The association is led by a committee (Vorstand) that organises activities such as pizza evenings, neighbourhood brunches, Samichlaus visits in the Habsburgerwald, Süssbach clean-up days and information events on current issues. It also engages in planning matters, such as the introduction of Tempo 30 in the neighbourhood and planning questions related to the realisation of the Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz campus. A working group for neighbourhood development (Arbeitsgruppe Quartierentwicklung) was created to deal with planning issues in greater depth. The district itself has a rich history. The Klosterzelg area contains the Roman amphitheatre of Vindonissa, which before excavation was known as the "Bärisgruob". The round theatre square hosts the Windisch Jugendfest. The Reutenen district lies beyond the Süssbach stream up to the Südban. Until the 19th century the area was farmland, but from 1906 houses were built on the western edge of Windisch near Brugg station, especially for railway workers and later factory workers. By 1949 there were 104 houses, and the Brugg-Windisch housing cooperative, founded in 1955, added more. By 1970 the area was almost completely built up, including high-rise buildings in Weiermatt. Since the 1960s the Tech centre, the Catholic church centre Sankt Maria and the Rütenen schoolhouse have been built. The association has been involved in numerous planning and construction projects over the decades. It has a dedicated working group "Verkehr Klosterzelg-Reutenen" that includes the association, the municipality of Windisch, the cable factory, the university of applied sciences and the Rütenen schoolhouse. Through submissions and ideas to improve municipal building plans, the association seeks good solutions for the neighbourhood. The largest urban development topic in the area is the construction of the Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz campus. Traffic cutting through the neighbourhood has been a political issue, and the association critically accompanies projects such as the planned south-west bypass. The Süssbach stream runs through the district, and the annual Süssbach clean-up day is a fixed event in the association's programme. The stream was once an open sewer for factories in Birrfäld, and the pedestrian underpass was nicknamed "Stinkbachdunäll"; it only became clean again after the sewage treatment plant was built on the Aare in 1967. Today the association continues to organise social and informational events, represent residents' interests and engage with municipal planning. Its website provides news, event announcements and information about the committee and activities.

The Quartierverein Klosterzelg-Reutenen was founded in 1911, when the district still had very few houses. Its first president was the municipal clerk Hans Häfeli. At the beginning, the members were almost all railway workers employed at Brugg station. A particularly important reason for founding the association was that a gasworks was planned in lower Brugg; the city of Brugg lacked sufficient land for the factory and approached the municipality of Windisch to take over a corner of land on the Aare. The people of Windisch initially refused, but the neighbourhood association Klosterzelg-Reutenen supported the gasworks and persuaded the municipality to cede the building site to Brugg. On 28 December 1911 the gasworks went into operation. The Süssbach stream runs through the district. The Süssbach clean-up day is a fixed event in the association's programme. The stream was formerly more of an open sewer for the factories in Birrfäld, and the pedestrian underpass along the stream under the tracks was nicknamed "Stinkbachdunäll" by locals. Only after the sewage treatment plant was built on the Aare in 1967 did the Süssbach become clean again. To this day the neighbourhood association has repeatedly dealt with smaller and also large planning and construction projects. There is a dedicated working group "Verkehr Klosterzelg-Reutenen", which includes the association, the municipality of Windisch, the cable factory, the university of applied sciences and the Rütenen schoolhouse. Through submissions and ideas to improve the municipality's building plans, the association looks for good solutions in the neighbourhood. The largest urban development topic in the area is the construction history of the Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz campus. Traffic cutting across the neighbourhood has been a political issue. Between the old country road to Hausen, the Klosterzelgstrasse, the Rütenenstrasse and the old Habsburgerstrasse and the station, many other traffic axes have been built. Some of the new neighbourhood streets recall the ancient past: there is a Römerstrasse, an Arenawäg and the Amphirain, a Römerhof and the Galdiatorewäg. One can also stop at the Restaurant Vindonissa and play skittles. There have repeatedly been plans to build a large western bypass of Brugg and Windisch that would have passed through the middle of the area or to its west. The Underwärchstrasse beyond the railway cutting down to Brugg's Aarauerstrasse is a popular shortcut west of the town centre, even though the barrier is repeatedly closed. In the canton's new project for a south-west bypass, the Underwärchstrasse would be replaced by the new K 401 connection and one would no longer have to cross the railway crossing. The neighbourhood association also critically accompanies this project. In 2011 the association celebrated its 100th anniversary with a jubilee event in the amphitheatre, as reported in the Regional. Zeitung für den Bezirk Brugg und die Nachbargmeinden. Today the association continues to organise social events, represent residents' interests and engage with municipal planning. Its website provides news, event announcements and information about the committee and activities.

• 2026

  114th General Assembly held on 6 March.

• 2011

  100th anniversary celebrated with a jubilee event in the amphitheatre.

• 1970

  The Klosterzelg and Reutenen area is almost completely built up.

• 1967

  Sewage treatment plant on the Aare begins operation, cleaning up the Süssbach.

• 1955

  Brugg-Windisch housing cooperative founded, adding more houses.

• 1949

  The district has 104 houses.

• 1911

  Founding of the Quartierverein Klosterzelg-Reutenen; Hans Häfeli becomes first president.

• 1911

  Gasworks in Brugg goes into operation on 28 December, supported by the association.

Politically neutral neighbourhood association representing residents' interests in the Klosterzelg-Reutenen district of Windisch.

1. 1Quartierverein Klosterzelg Reutenen – 5210 Windischqvkr.ch
2. 2Über uns – Quartierverein Klosterzelg Reutenenqvkr.ch
3. 3Quartierverein Klosterzelg-Reutenenwikidata.org
4. 4Quartierverein Klosterzelg-Reutenenals.wikipedia.org