Europan Germany

E5: Sites

E5: Essen

Location brief description

Population: 610,570
Category: City center peripheral area / industrial wasteland
Size of area: approx. 47.7 ha

The competition site is excluded from the urban fabric by the northern ring road and the arterial road to Bottrop. It forms an island of use isolated by these traffic routes, to which the ecological park "Segeroth" adjoins to the north and west. Due to its previous use as an industrial site and most recently as a university expansion area, the planning area today lacks any urban identity.

The competition task was to develop an inner-city, attractive and condensed residential and commercial area with corresponding surrounding qualities and, in doing so, to redefine the spatial proximity between the bordering and bordering expressways.

E5: Geesthacht

Location brief description

Population: 29,200
Category: inner-city fringe/industrial wasteland
Size: 6 areas ranging from 0.5 - 7 ha

Geesthacht is a small-town structured commercial and industrial location 30 km east of Hamburg. The town is idyllically situated between the wooded Geestkante and the Elbe. Geesthacht strives for an orientation towards the Elbe. The boundary between the inner-city development and the harbor ground is characterized by an elevation change and additionally reinforced by a railroad track, a high-voltage road and a busy road along the harbor.

The competition task was to achieve a sustainable link between the existing harbor area and the nearby inner city while integrating the intervening redevelopment area as well as the green areas with their recreational functions.

E5: Gotha

Location brief description

Population: 50,000
Location name: former freight station and coal storage area
Scale: approx. 10 ha

The former residential city of Gotha is a traditional medium-sized city in Thuringia with an independent cultural life. The competition site on the area of the former freight station is bordered in the south by the railroad line between Berlin and Frankfurt am Main. To the north - separated by a road - the castle park and the listed old town adjoin.

Due to the central location in the immediate vicinity of the train station, there is an opportunity to create a multifunctional center through urban redevelopment that combines commercial and public uses with individual living and offers a high quality of life for residents despite the proximity to the rail line.

E5: Guben / Gubin

Location brief description

Guben:
Population: 28300
Designation of place: Reichenbacher Berg
Category: inner city area
Size of area: approx. 1.3 ha

Gubin:
Population: 18000
Location name: Emilia Plater
Category: inner city fringe area
Area size: approx. 0.8 ha

The city was divided by the Potsdam Agreement in 1945; to the east of the river the Polish city of Gubin was created, to the west of the river the German city of Guben. As border towns in the Brandenburg-Polish area, both cities have a new, important key role today.

Both competition sites are located within sight of each other, each on the edge of prefabricated housing estates, in similar topogra-phic locations. Under the theme "Cost-effective building - living without borders", ownership measures with a high quality of living were to be developed and integrated into the existing urban structures. In the process, possibilities for cross-border cooperation between the cities were to be identified.

E5: München

Location brief description

Population: 1.3 million
Location name: Munich - Lochhausen
Category: Suburban location
Space: approx. 10.9 ha

The state capital Munich is an important cultural, commercial and economic center of the region. The competition area is located in a rural settlement area on the northwestern outskirts of the city. It is connected to the city center, 13.5 km away, via the rapid transit network. Urban development aims to strengthen existing neighborhoods, especially on the outskirts of the city.

The task was to develop a high-quality location for residential projects with a model character that offer a high quality of life for the residents even with greater building density. The new quarter is to connect the adjacent residential areas and strengthen the center function in the area of the town center.

E5: Schwabach

Location brief description

Population: 38,000
Location name: Former Schwabach military site
Category: Former U.S. barracks to be converted
Space: approx. 9 ha

Schwabach is a traditional medium-sized town with an independent economic and cultural life. The competition area is a section of the former barracks site, located 500 m from the historic old town. The competition task was to develop an attractive and mixed-use residential quarter close to the city center with appropriate surrounding qualities and different residential forms and structures. Particular emphasis was to be placed on the spatial and use-related linkage and connection of the new quarter to the old town and the adjacent, existing new development areas.

E5: Weissenfels

Location brief description

Population: 35,000
Location name: Former royal stables site
Area size: approx. 2.2 ha

Weißenfels is a town with an important past in the south of Saxony-Anhalt.

The competition area is located on the edge of the old town, opposite the castle, and includes the former Marstall grounds and the eastern area of the former castle garden. To the north and east, the site is bordered by a freeway feeder road. The appearance is determined by partly closed building masses such as large garages, workshops and covered storage areas. The relationship to the former castle garden and the castle has been completely lost. The search is on for an acceptable combination of new construction and redevelopment that makes clear the complexity of urban change.