Gasometers or gasholders--huge storage containers for the gas used in heating and cooking--were built in many cities during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, when gas was a commercial byproduct of coal mining, steelmaking, and other industrial processes. Today, many of the old gasometers have been replaced by pipelines and tank farms, but a few are being adapted to new uses.

In 1896 the Viennese authorities decided to invest in large-scale gas and electric utilities, so they constructed what became Europe’s largest gas plant. After nearly a century long run the plant was decommissioned, and left behind were four massive gasometers. These are four gigantic gas tanks enclosed by a brick façade, each approximately 230 feet tall, 197 feet in diameter, and with a storage capacity of over 3 million cubic feet. Once used for the storage of coal gas, the gasometers were retired in 1984 as the city shifted over to natural gas.

By 1981 these structure were classified as heritage buildings due to their unique architecture, and thus escaped demolition. Despite random use since the closing of the plant (see the setting in the James Bond movie The Living Daylights. Also see: rave venue hosting Gazometer-Raves – the term “Gazometer” was coined on its scene) they remained on the whole abandoned empty containers.

These incredible structures were cast off, but a  revitalization project led by Jean Nouvel, Coop Himmelb, Manfred Wehdorn, and Wilhelm Holzbauer have transformed these four tanks into spectacular and thriving communities. Between 1999 and 2001 the Gasometers were gutted leaving only the brick exterior and parts of the roof.

Reborn as a residential and commercial development named "Gasometer-Town."or "G-town," as the locals call it, includes:

• 70 shops, restaurants, bars, cafes, and a vinotheque.
• A multiplex cinema with 12 screens.
• An events hall with room for 4,200 people.
• A daycare center.
• 11,000 square meters of office space.
• 615 apartments.
• A 230-bed student dormitory.
• and also The Vienna National Archive!

Today the gasometers form a unique city center all their own, with a strong sense of community given its abundant housing and diversity of destinations. Numerous theses and dissertations in psychology, urban planning, journalism and architecture have been written about the phenomenon which has arisen from the project.