Hannover-List „Pelikan-District“

Context

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Owing to its industrial heritage, the city of Hannover is rich in industrial wastelands which are exploited as urban development opportunities. Like the Pelikan site, most of these areas are situated in living urban districts where the infrastructure required for subsequent uses is already available. Many of the sites feature good public transport connections, which often lead to larger green and open spaces located nearby.

Most of the revitalization areas currently existing in Hannover have already been catalogued by the Office for the Promotion of Trade and Industry. The Pelikan quarter project was hence integrated in an overarching development strategy for the city.

The Pelikan quarter is situated in the northeast of Lower Saxony’s state capital Hannover (pop. 521.000) on a site formerly occupied by the stationery producer Pelikan AG. A number of manufacturing operations had been built along Pobielskistraße, along with the corresponding residential buildings, at the end of the 19th century.

Following the discontinuance of the manufacturing operations on the site in 1989, an area measuring approximately 10 ha became available on the periphery of the town centre in the district of “List” – which is characterized by a great number of late 19th century buildings. Listed historic buildings and modern production halls on the site offered generous spaces for a new use. The change of use of the industrial wasteland opened up new potentials for interior development in the city of Hannover. List is on the most popular districts in Hannover. The connection to public transport is reached by only 2 minutes by foot and connects the location with the main station and the inner city in only 10 minutes travel time. The Midland Canal and Eilenriede, Europe’s largest city forest and popular recreational area are also within walking distance

In the period from 1996 to 1999, the project was funded and evaluated as a model project within the research field “Mixed Use in Urban Planning” (Nutzungsmischung im Städtebau) which is part of the federal research programme “Experimental Housing and Urban Development” (Experimenteller Wohnungs- und Städtebau).

Project description

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The removal of contamination was one of the most important tasks as the revitalization of the Pelikan site was started. The type and extent of the pollution and the remediation costs had been determined via an expert opinion elaborated earlier.

A market analysis investigating economically viable uses for the project had been performed at the same time. Based on this, several master plans and a concept featuring the use areas employment, housing and leisure were elaborated between 1992 and 1993.

One area measuring approximately 4 ha contains the listed buildings, which are now mostly used by commercial operations. The old production facilities in the other section measuring approximately 6 ha were pulled down and replaced by new buildings for housing and services. To interlock the development with the surrounding structures and provide a contrast to the historic stock, the new constructions were arranged in blocks along a newly created, diagonal main access road, the Günther-Wagner-Allee.

The 162 new residential units created a high quality location and very good connections to municipal and regional road and transport networks. Features providing a high residential quality include the new apartments’ conceptual orientation towards the green area adjoining to the west at “Tintengraben” or towards the market square within the district, as well as their proximity to the municipal forest “Eilenriede”, which is located south of Podbielskistrasse. Approximately 2.000 jobs have been created in the Pelikan quarter. Large employers include insurance and financial service companies. A key project was the early integration of a four-star hotel in the listed building stock. Owing to the Pelikan quarter’s good image and favourable location, the hotel is very well know in the exhibition centre town Hannover, despite intensive competition, as well as in the region and beyond. The buildings are today viewed as important monuments of the industrial architecture at the turn of the 19th to the 20th century. Their preservation represents a significant contribution to the positive image enjoyed by the Pelikan district.

Since 2008 the completing stage of the Pelikan quarter is being specified. From 2011 the housing association Gundlach will develop a high-quality residential quarter on the remaining building lands on the basis of the results of the two staged international architectural competition.

In the course of this, the basic challenge lies in the reasonable continuation of the Pelikan quarter’s concept of urban planning as well as the generation of an independent identity as a residential area in a district with an immediate neighbourhood to listed buildings and recent building projects.

Especially the desire of variety of utilisation in the residential area is supposed to be continued. The planning not only includes flats, but also a day-care centre as well as business, trade and catering facilities in the ground floors levels of the main streets. The planned flatoffer also focuses on diversity.

Within the aim of a sustainable basic structure varied types of flats including rental apartments and freehold flats in the range of midrange and upper requirements are supposed to be developed. They vary in flat size, flat location and the quality of equipment. The flatsize varies from a one-bedroom flat at 40 m² up to a 7-bedroomflat at 200 m² and more.

Not least there are high expectations particularly with regard to sustainable building associated with the project. The use oft terrestrial heat, hybrid collectors on the roof, grey water, wooden windows and a sustainable brick façade contribute to this. The verification of an adequate number of bicycle parking spaces also has a positive effect. Included in the socio-cultural and user friendly aspects is the park-like design of the inner courtyards and the concept of playschools and shops, which essentially contribute to the vitalisation of the location. Every residential building passes through the construction accompanying inspection certification from the German association for sustainable building.

This project was honoured with the golden pre-certification from the German association for sustainable building.

Project chronology

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Year	Event
1989	Manufacturing operation is discontinued
1991	The site is sold
1992	Market study
1992-1993	Master planning
1992	Initiation of the general development plan procedure
from 1994	Modernization of listed buildings
1995	First building permission in compliance with article 34 of the Building Code, first construction measures
1996	Development contract between the council and the owner
1996-1999	Inclusion in the EHUD research field “Mixed Use in Urban Planning”
1997-1999	Completion of the first new office and residential buildings, tenants move in
After 2000	Continuation and completion of the building measures in the first construction stage
2008-2009	Two stage international architectural competition regarding the second construction stage
2010	Golden pre-certification from the German association for sustainable building for a residential project
2011	Start of construction works in the residential area

Aims

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• Reactivation of an inner city wasteland
• Development of a high-quality, varied urban district
• Realization of mixed use
• Integration of listed industrial buildings
• Preservation and improvement of the housing location
• Realization of high sustainability standards in residential construction
• Safeguarding and creating jobs
• Improving the open space situation

Types of measures

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• Master plan
• Legally binding land-use plan
• Development contract
• Marketing concept
• Public-private partnership
• Restoration and modernization of industrial monuments
• Construction of new residential and commercial spaces
• International architectural competition

Innovations

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The Pelikan quarter project is a good example for the successful revitalization of an inner city wasteland.

A market analysis carried out early on resulted in a continuous development of the mixed use concept (motto "living variety") including the integration of listed building stock of outstanding quality.

In the second development stage it led to a high - quality residential building concept, which was able to fulfil high sustainability standards.

Most of all to relieve the financial burden on the municipal budgets, private investors played a decisive role in the wasteland development. The privately managed project leadership was a precondition for the Pelikan quarter's realization.

As a final measure, the image of the industrial site was transformed into that of an attractive inner city residential and office location with the help of a conclusive marketing strategy.

Concerning the remaining inner city fallow land, the council will continue to strive for consistent interior development in future.

The revitalization of urban wastelands as an internally coordinated administration strategy has proven its viability over a long period of time and demonstrably been able to prevent “building on green land”.

Sources

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• BBR (client), FIRU GmbH (contractor): Querauswertung von ExWoSt-Modellvorhaben zum Flächenrecycling, 2004 (Lateral Evaluation of the EHUD Model Projects for Area Recycling, 2004) (unpublished report)
• Institut für Stadtforschung und Strukturpolitik GmbH (Institute for Urban Research and Structural Policy): PelikanViertel Hannover, Reaktivierung einer innerstädtischen Brachfläche, Endbericht im Entwurf (Pelikan-Quarter Hannover, Reactivation of an Inner City Wasteland, Final Report Draft), Hannover 1999
• BBR: „Werkstatt: Praxis“ magazine nr. 2/2000 Nutzungsmischung im Städtebau (Mixed Use in Urban Development)
• BBR: ExWoSt-Informationen zum Forschungsfeld "Nutzungsmischung im Städtebau"(EXHUD Information on the Research Field "Mixed Use in Urban Planning"): 19.2, 19.4, 19.5, 19.6
• Landeshauptstadt Hannover (Hannover Council), Information Brochure: In Hannover wohnen( „Living in Hannover“), issue dated August 2003

Further information

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• <http://www.pelikanviertel-hannover.de/>
• <http://www.pelikanviertel.com/>
• <http://www.hannover.de/>

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The projekt site ist to be found at postal code: 30177 - town: Hannover - street: Günther-Wagner-Allee.

Protagonists

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• Landeshauptstadt Hannover (Hannover Council), Stadtplanungsamt, Fachbereich Planen und Stadtentwicklung (Town Planning Office, Planning and Urban Development Department), Rudolf-Hilebrecht-Platz 1, 30159 Hannover, Karl Schuchert, Tel.: 05 11 / 16 84 44 47, Email: <karl.schuchert@hannover-stadt.de>, Herr Zunft, Tel.: 05 11 / 16 84 22 15, Fax: 05 11 / 16 84 20 49
• Firmengruppe Gundlach (Group Gundlach), Am Holzgraben 1, 30161 Hannover, Herr Scharnowski, Tel.: 0511/ 3109-202, Web: <http://www.gundlach-bau.de>. Email: <scharnowski@gundlach-bau.de>