New park for the neighbourhood and a school site on railway wasteland
(North-Rhine Westphalia)
Source: Stadt Aachen
The freight train station in Moltkestraße was built in 1885 in the "Frankenberger Viertel" in Aachen (250,000 inhabitants) during the early years of the founding of the German Empire. It was used up until the 1980s. After its closure, a building materials supplier and smaller traders remained in the west part of the area. The 4.5 hectare east section turned to wasteland. Because the area was inaccessible, a biotope developed with valuable spontaneously growing vegetation. As part of Nordrhein-Westphalia’s model project "Ökologische Stadt der Zukunft" (Ecological City of the Future), in which the City of Aachen took part between 1992 and 2002, an effort was made to make these inner city wastelands accessible to the public and, with consideration of the existing vegetation, to use them in a new way.
Source: Wüstenrot-Stiftung
In order to reduce the deficit of open spaces in the very dense urban districts, a new park for citizens and young people was created in the 8 hectare area. Also, a comprehensive school was built and areas for compact housing and non-disturbing trades were allocated on the parts of the west sections which had so far not been used.
The basis for the school design, which was chosen by a competition, is the idea of an “educating city”, which is symbolised by five individual buildings – the “Study House”, three “School Houses” and a Sports Hall. The elongated Study House is conceptualised as an educational centre, with a forum, library, workshops, administration, social area and kitchen and also the higher level and specialised classes. The smaller School Houses, with the class and work rooms for the lower and intermediate levels, have direct entryways from the outside area. The 6 stream school was carried out cost effectively, energetically and ecologically in an exemplary manner. For saving energy, a 115 kW solar power system (2000 m² surface) was set up. Furthermore, heating and cooling is assisted by a concrete core wall heating system. The school buildings integrate themselves into the urban neighbourhood’s building structure in a well proportioned manner with their aesthetically broken up building mass. With its appealing colour, the school building has become a multifunctional and cultural centre for the surrounding neighbourhoods, which goes beyond the school operation and also offers informal events for the local population.
The 4.5 hectare Moltkebahnhof residential area park for citizens and young people was designed in an idea workshop with children and young adults as an “open urban district park”. Both the school’s outside facilities and the other public green areas area closely linked to the adjacent residential neighbourhood. By dispensing with large area covering and the extensive retention of relicts of the previous usage (track gravel, foundations, platforms, walls etc.), it was possible to preserve the sensitive wasteland vegetation areas. Despite this, the park offers versatile space for relaxation and play activities with its sparing and natural layout.
The Moltkebahnhof local park for citizens and young people forms the start and end points of a planned green axis which connects the south urban districts with the inner city over the former railway track, and connects these with the local recreation areas.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1997/98 | Design Competition "Comprehensive School and Moltkebahnhof Area" |
| from 1998 | Authorisation planning and realisation |
| 2000 | Start of building for the comprehensive school and planning of the park with children and young adults |
| End 2000 | Beginning of work on the park |
| 2001 | Begin of school operations at Maria Montessori Comprehensive School |
| 2002 | Official handover of the Moltkebahnhof local park |
| 2004 | Finishing of the final building sections in the comprehensive school |
| 2004 | Finishing of the “Green Promenade” (footpath and cycle path on the old train tracks to connect the park with the east of Aachen) |
Photography: Tina Hörmann
Photography: Tina Hörmann
Photography: Tina Hörmann
The combination of a naturally designed and multi-function local park with an open “School City” represents a forward-thinking concept. It has given rise to an inner city area which fulfils the high functional, ecological, social and economical demands.
The project location can be directly translated into Google-maps. Project in Google-Maps
The projekt site ist to be found at postal code: 52066 - town: Aachen - street: Moltkestraße.
Record inserted on 01.02.2004 by Lehrstuhl für Planungstheorie und Stadtplanung, RWTH Aachen and updated by theFederal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) within the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR).
Last update: 24.08.2010
