Page 93 - AIT1222_E-Paper

Entwurf • Design carsten gerhards architekten, Berlin
Grundriss 2. Obergeschoss • Floor plan level +2
Lageplan • Site view
Bauherr • Client SBR Luisencenter, München
Standort • Location Luisenplatz 1, Darmstadt
Nutzfläche • Floor space 6000 m 2
Fotos • Photos Werner Huthmacher, Berlin
Mehr Infos auf Seite • More info on page 126
MUNICIPAL OFFICE
IN DARMSTADT
Administration buildings need waiting halls, corridors
and counter rooms. Carsten Gerhards shows that they
can also be more than a stringing together of oppressing
threshold spaces. In the Darmstadt Luisencenter shop-
ping centre affected by structural change, a new munici-
pal- and public order office was established that, as an
“urban living room”, ensures more citizen participation.
I n the Darmstadt administrations, there has recently been increasing
cause for criticism and the new location comes with numerous chan-
ces for improvement. That, however, at the same time new life is breat-
hed into a struggling shopping mall turns the project into something
special! For a long time, the former congress hall on the second and
third floor of Luisencenter had been vacant and, most recently, also had
salesrooms. In the context of a seminar at Darmstadt University of Ap-
plied Sciences, the hall was then considered to be suitable for munici-
pal premises, above all due to its central location. Since February, the
new administration facility can now be accessed on the escalators of
the shopping centre as well as (without buying anything) via stairwells
and the new outside elevator. A lot of work has gone into optimized pro-
cesses, simple orientation and the additional use of the central waiting
area for events. Existing open spaces of the old hall had to be closed in
part and it was essential to respectfully deal with the glass front towards
Luisenplatz and the structures behind it since the façade section under
monumental protections as a part of the square. The design of the cen-
tral room of the municipal administration is oriented on the model of
the “Darmstadt room” by Joseph Maria Olbricht. In line with this, the
atmosphere, ornamentation and acoustics have been entirely integrated
in the planning: Parquet flooring, specifically designed wooden furni-
ture and red curtains look warm and inviting; the colder colour tones
of the upholstery, carpets and tea kitchens result in a well-balanced
overall mixture. The cold-warm balance can additionally be adjusted to
the respective event with the LED lighting of the wall panelling – if nee-
ded, the light temperature of the “pixel image” can be switched from
cold to warm. There is room for the ventilation as well and all the in-
stallations behind the modules developed according to the model and
consisting of white-painted MDF. The pixel pattern distributes the sound
into the room so that the small hall is perfectly suitable for events, for
instance for citizen participation. There is hoping that the concerns
meet with open ears due to the excellent room acoustics.
AIT 12.2022 • 093