22.10.2024

Buga 2029: Competition for Bacharach decided

Building design

View of the Münzbach. Source: Buga2029/urbanegestalt Cologne

The Federal Horticultural Show 2029 will take place in the Upper Middle Rhine Valley World Heritage Site. This runs along 67 kilometers of the Rhine and approximately 620 square kilometers from Bingen/Rüdesheim to Koblenz. With the working title “Welcome to the water”, the aim is to connect people, the World Heritage Valley and the Buga. Buga 2029 will take place at several locations simultaneously. The competition winner has now been chosen for one of the three key areas, Bacharach in the Mainz-Bingen district. The landscape architecture firm urbanegestalt, Cologne, together with Hille und Tesch Architekten, Ingelheim, came out on top out of ten designs. Read more about the open space planning design competition here.

The Federal Horticultural Show 2029 will take place in the Upper Middle Rhine Valley World Heritage Site. This runs along 67 kilometers of the Rhine and approximately 620 square kilometers from Bingen/Rüdesheim to Koblenz. With the working title “Welcome to the Water”, the aim is to connect people, the World Heritage Valley and the BUGA. BUGA 2029 will take place at several locations simultaneously. The competition winner has now been chosen for one of the three focus areas, Bacharach in the Mainz-Bingen district. The landscape architecture firm urbanegestalt (Cologne) together with Hille und Tesch Architekten (Ingelheim) came out on top out of ten designs. Read more about the open space planning design competition here.

Bacharach is a historic town with a castle, monastery and half-timbered houses. It has already made a name for itself as a poetic, cosmopolitan meeting place. However, it is not only the architecture and cultural history of the town that is worth a visit, but also the natural surroundings. The city and Buga 2029 have set themselves the joint goal of strengthening the connection between the Rhine facilities and the old town. The aim is to offer locals and visitors a decelerated experience. The 10-hectare planning area runs from the Werth to the beach at the campsite. So many things come together here: Old town charm, landscape park, sports and leisure facilities, lido and camping.

The State Commissioner for Buga 2029, State Secretary Simone Schneider, is delighted: “I am delighted that the Buga is continuing to take shape in Bacharach. The winning design embodies the Buga’s declared aim of making the river a tangible experience and combines this with the unique medieval town center and many creative ideas from the town itself.” And according to city mayor Philipp Rahn, the winning design incorporates precisely the ideas submitted by the citizens of Bacharach. In this respect, he says: “In this way, we can continue to develop the gem of Bacharach until Buga 2029, not only with regard to our history, but also for future generations.”

The winning design provides a robust framework for the exhibitions and events of Buga 2029. Jochen Sandner, Managing Director of the Deutsche Bundesgartenschau-Gesellschaft, says: “The Buga concept builds on the foundations of the permanent redesign of the site. Future Buga visitors will certainly be able to look forward to many colorful and imaginative surprises created by the green sector for the visitor experience at the 2029 Federal Horticultural Show summer festival.”

The working title of the design for Buga 2029 is “Islands of Poetry”. Special places with different, inspiring functions are to be created on the islands. Various themes are brought together under the umbrella term of poetry: Creativity with painting and aesthetics as well as experiencing nature with travel and departure. The winning team divided the “Islands of Poetry” into “Auenufer”, “Park” and “B(e)acharach”.

Urbanegestalt and its team are dividing the Buga 2029 development area into three open space typologies: Floodplain park, landscape park and sports and leisure park with lido. Each of these typologies promises a different atmosphere. Meanwhile, the riverside promenade running along the Rhine links the open spaces together.

Auenufer

The “Auenufer” can be found in the north. Here, part of the landscape is being transformed into a floodplain landscape. The path meanders through near-natural planting, creating niches and places of retreat. The relaxed atmosphere is complemented by the Tonnenhof restaurant.

Climate garden and greenhouse

The path continues to the so-called climate garden and greenhouse. The area consists of lawns and drought-resistant plantings. The riverside promenade runs alongside a ferry landing stage. Here you can cross over to the Bacharacher Werth. The Münzbach lagoon connects the “Auenufer” with the wooden deck at the ferry landing stage. You can walk across the Rhine on large stones here. In general, there are plans for a usable bank area along the promenade – for example with seating steps.

Landscape garden

The next section leads into the so-called landscape garden. Here, in the historical part of the park, the original pathways of the Rhine facilities will be retained. In addition, the previous parking lot will be unsealed to continue the landscape park. Seating areas along the paths offer idyllic views of the Rhine and the city.

The central meadow in the planning area is used for sports and events. Beach volleyball courts and a calisthenics facility could also be added to the area. And there is a mobile wine pavilion on the shore.

A spacious area with activities for all age groups will be created in the southern section of the plan. The area is adjacent to the public swimming pool and the campsite. It therefore has the potential to appeal to visitors and especially the younger generations of Bacharach even after Buga 2029. The campsite could focus on innovative elements here. Group tent pitches or tiny houses would enable a diverse and sustainable camping experience.

The realization part of the open space planning competition only includes the Rhine facilities. The transition to the old town and the B9 is part of the ideas section. This only serves as an urban planning proposal. Here, the winning team largely took into account the specifications in accordance with the planning of the Landesbetrieb Mobilität. For example, they propose optimizing the parking facilities at the future Edeka supermarket by means of a mobility hub.

However, the real work is only just beginning. Buga Managing Director Sven Stimac said: “Together with the town of Bacharach and the prizewinners, we will discuss intensively which proposals from the draft can be financed, implemented and operated sustainably. We look forward to further cooperation”. Two further competitions have already been announced for sections of Buga 2029.

Did you know? BUGA 2031 will take place in Wuppertal. Find out more here.

03.05.2021

Design, Translated: Branchennews

New Online Store for Grave Sites

Building design

The online store “Grabkauf Online,” which offers themed gravesites at the Ohlsdorf Park Cemetery, is the first of its kind in Germany. Photo: Hamburg Cemeteries

Hamburg’s cemeteries have jointly developed an online store for purchasing gravesites. This allows interested individuals to conveniently browse the wide variety of options from the comfort of their own homes on their computers.

The “Grabkauf Online” online store for themed gravesites at the Ohlsdorf Park Cemetery is the first of its kind in Germany. Photo: Hamburg Cemeteries

Especially in these times, when direct contact must be avoided, the importance of online services is increasing significantly—particularly those that eliminate the need for in-person visits. Hamburger Friedhöfe has now developed a shop for purchasing graves online. The shop offers 13 different themed burial plots at Ohlsdorf Cemetery—ranging from the wildflower garden to the Ohlsdorf Forest of Peace to the crypt.

This allows interested individuals to conveniently browse the variety of options from the comfort of their own home on a computer. Photo galleries and videos showcase the beauty of the sites. People can also view the sites and seek advice with family members or friends, even from a distance. This can provide inspiration to many who have previously been reluctant to address the topic.

Of course, it is still possible to visit the facilities at Ohlsdorf Cemetery in person. A digital map is provided for each burial plot, making it easier to locate them within the cemetery. Prices are also listed. The burial plots are offered as part of pre-need planning. This means that anyone who purchases a burial plot pays the price in effect today, regardless of when they use it. Upon purchase, the plot is reserved for an unlimited period. From the time of death, it may then be used for 25 years. However, all options can also be purchased in the event of a specific death.

You can find more information here.

16.12.2024

Hotel

Tokyo, Andaz Hotel

Building design

In the “Andaz Hotel” on the top floors of the second highest tower in Tokyo, the view is the main attraction. Despite the owners, an American hotel chain, the decor focuses on local color.

The view over Tokyo’s sea of buildings is familiar from the movie “Lost in Translation”. The view is also the main attraction at the Andaz Hotel on the top floors of the city’s second-highest tower. Despite the owners, an American hotel chain, the décor focuses on local color.

The topographically highest point in Tokyo, Atago Mountain, measures exactly 26 meters. In the past, this height was enough to see as far as Tokyo Bay – today, however, high-rise buildings obscure the view from the elevation on which the Atago Shrine has been attracting worshippers since 1603.

One of the newest towers in the city is the “Toranomon Hills Tower” by Nihon Sekkei Architects: 52 storeys high, it stretches into the sky, its floor plan reminiscent of a rhombus with partly rounded and partly chamfered corners. At 235 meters, Tokyo’s highest wedding chapel nestles triangularly under the sloping, triangular roof.

However, the tower cannot lay claim to the superlative “tallest building”, as the “Tokyo Midtown Tower”, which was completed in 2007, towers 13 meters above the Toranomon Hills Tower. However, static or structural problems were not the reason for the unbroken height record: the high-rise is so close to the Imperial Palace that additional storeys would have disturbed the privacy of the imperial family and were not approved.

But even without looking into the royals’ gardens and chambers, the view from the top six floors of the “Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills” hotel is hard to beat. New York designer Toni Chi and Tokyo-born interior designer Shinichiro Ogata have therefore focused the hotel rooms, which are at least 50 square meters in size by Japanese standards, entirely on the view: From the bed, from the sofa and from the desk, the view falls down to the city through the completely glazed front.

But it would be a shame not to take a look at the rooms too; the walls are clad in off-white panels covered with traditional shoji paper and set off with dark Hokkaido walnut wood, while sliding wooden walls transform the hallway into a dressing room in an ingenious and space-saving way.

Local materials and quotes from Japanese architecture and art history were also used in the elevators, lobby, spa and restaurant and interpreted in a contemporary way. The boutique hotel brand Andaz, which has opened its 12th hotel worldwide and its first in Japan with the Andaz Tokyo, places great value on authenticity: while Marcel Wanders designed the Andaz Amsterdam, for example, the Andaz Tokyo promises “Japanese experiences” for guests and locals.

The ambitious concept tolerates the inevitable breaks inherent in the term authenticity per se: the so-called Kumiko mural, puzzled together from thousands of wooden pieces, fits just as well into the almost six-metre-high hotel lobby on the 51st floor as electric light into the historic Atago shrine.

Address

Andaz Tokyo
Toranomon Hills 3-20-16-2F Nishi-Azabu Minato-ku
Tokyo 106-0031 Japan
Tel.+81 3 6830 1234, Fax.+81 3 6830 1211
www.andaztokyo.com