nrw.landscapearchitecture.prize 2024 awarded

The North Rhine-Westphalia Landscape Architecture Prize was awarded for the eleventh time this year. The prize was awarded by the North Rhine-Westphalia regional group of the bdla. You can find out which twelve projects were awarded various prizes and recognitions by the jury here.

Three prizes, two commendations, two future prizes and a joint special prize for five individual projects – these are the results of this year’s North Rhine-Westphalia Landscape Architecture Prize. The Association of German Landscape Architects NRW (bdla nw) thus honored a total of twelve projects from ten offices. The award winners were honored in mid-May at the Erich Brost Pavilion at Zeche Zollverein in Essen. The bdla nw has been awarding the prize since 2004 and this year’s edition marks the eleventh time it has been awarded.

For the competition, bdla offices were able to submit work that they had realized or worked on in North Rhine-Westphalia. For the second time, conceptual, green planning, landscape planning, urban planning and climate-impacting projects were eligible to take part in addition to project planning. The jury ultimately made its selection from 29 entries. The jury was chaired by landscape architect Katja Benfer, Professor at Leibniz Universität Hannover.

The jury honored a total of three projects with an award. One of them is Blücherplatz in the small East Westphalian town of Spenge. Franz Reschke Landschaftsarchitektur redesigned the square. The planners transformed a former traffic area: Blücherplatz now offers space for city life and events. It is equipped with clinker paving, a water feature, planting areas and more. The project has created a “worthy square space” in Spenge, writes the jury in its commentary. Blücherplatz “does outstanding justice to its role as a stage [for urban life]”.

On the other hand, one of the three award winners is the St. Viktor church square in the center of Dülmen. The square was redesigned by Lohaus Carl Köhlmos Landschaftsarchitektur Stadtplanung. Among other things, old trees and the original radial pathways were incorporated. The planners made the church square barrier-free and integrated new equipment and play elements. The jury praised this project, saying that the design interventions were natural and restrained. It seems as if the square has always been like this.

The third prize-winning work of the nrw.landschaftsarchitektur.preis 2024 can be found on the outskirts of Gelsenkirchen: the Kauenhof on the new Westerholt colliery, which was redesigned by Landschaftsarchitektur Vennemann. A quarter for working and living is being created on the site of the colliery. A former gatehouse can also be found on the Kauenhof. This has now been converted into a cultural pavilion. Existing industrial materials were reused in the redesign of the Kauenhof. This was done in the spirit of a circular economy. The jury commentary also describes the design idea as “exemplary for future resource-conserving, sustainable construction”.

In addition to the three prizes, the jury also awarded two commendations as part of the nrw.landschaftsarchitektur.preis 2024, one of which went to wbp Landschaftsarchitekten for the sports campus in Kreuztal. There, the planners transformed an area located between schools and sports halls into a new center with various usable areas. Among other things, a stream was reopened. A kind of green arena was also created: an open meadow area surrounded by seating steps.

The Franz Reschke office, which has already won an award, also received recognition for the 2023 State Garden Show in Höxter. The office developed a concept for the old town ring, Weserbogen, archaeological park and castle garden. According to the jury, it had thus “provided a varied but also unifying design bracket for the historic site on the Weser”. This was accompanied by prospects for city life and tourism beyond the State Garden Show.

The nrw.landschaftsarchitektur.preis 2024 jury also awarded a future prize to each of two studies. This year, for the second time, participants were able to submit conceptual as well as realized works for the prize.

One of the prizes went to the planning office dtp Landschaftsarchitekten for their concept “The park is coming to the city!” for the city of Herten. This is a model for the development of Herten: the castle park is to be linked to the city center, new greenery is to be created and more. The entire urban community is to be involved in the development and later in the maintenance.

The second Future Prize was awarded to the greening plan for Dortmund by the Kienleplan office. Based on the “Green Wall – Green City” concept, the city in the Ruhr region is to be transformed to make it climate-friendly. The plan is to increase the proportion of green spaces in Dortmund. According to the jury, the plan offers politicians and administrators a guideline for action that is based on facts and calculations. In this way, problem situations and possible solution strategies are shown in a reliable and calculable way – “the ‘scientific’ way to climate adaptation”, according to the jury.

A special prize awarded for the first time as part of the nrw.landschaftsarchitektur.preis honors five individual projects together. Four planning offices share the award for the five district parks in the Ruhr metropolis. The parks have been upgraded in recent years, around 50 years after their creation. One of the aims was to emphasize the interconnectedness of the parks through connecting design elements. As the client, the Ruhr Regional Association is responsible for the regional district park strategy. Four offices were involved in the redesign of the five parks. ST-Freiraum Landschaftsarchitekten, for example, redesigned Revierpark Vonderort in Oberhausen. Landschaft planen + bauen NRW was responsible for two of the parks: Mattlerbusch in Duisburg and Nienhausen in Gelsenkirchen. The redesigned Revierpark Wischlingen in Dortmund was planned by brandenfels landscape + environment. The Drecker office redesigned the Revierpark Gysenberg in Herne.

Together with the non-profit association Baukultur Nordrhein-Westfalen, the bdla nw published a brochure for the nrw.landschaftsarchitektur.preis 2024, which presents all the projects submitted.

Prices

• Blücherplatz, Spenge – Franz Reschke Landschaftsarchitektur GmbH, Berlin/Hamburg
• Kirchplatz St. Viktor, Dülmen – Lohaus Carl Köhlmos PartGmbB Landschaftsarchitekten Stadtplaner, Hanover
• New Westerholt Colliery, Gelsenkirchen – Landscape architecture Vennemann, Dorsten

Recognitions

• Kreuztal sports campus – wbp Landschaftsarchitekten GmbH, Bochum
• State Garden Show 2023 Höxter – Franz Reschke Landschaftsarchitektur GmbH, Berlin

Future prizes

• The park comes to the city, Herten – planning office dtp Landschaftsarchitekten GmbH, Essen
• Dortmund through-greening plan – Kienleplan GmbH, Leinfelden-Echterdingen/Balingen

Special prize: Regional strategy for park development: five district parks in the Ruhr metropolis

• Revierpark Mattlerbusch, Duisburg and Revierpark Nienhausen, Gelsenkirchen – Landschaft planen + bauen NRW GmbH, Dortmund
• Revierpark Vonderort, Oberhausen – ST-Freiraum Landschaftsarchitekten, Duisburg
• Revierpark Gysenberg, Herne – Büro Drecker, Bottrop-Kirchhellen/Hanover
• Revierpark Wischlingen, Dortmund – brandenfels landscape + environment, Münster/Osnabrück

Read more: An overview of the landscape architecture prizes that have already been awarded and those that have just been announced in the various federal states can be found here.