Erlangen „Röthelheimpark“
An urban district for approximately 6.500 residents is created near the city centre on 136 ha of a former US-army military site. Besides commercial and housing areas, an extension for the Nürnberg-Erlangen University was build on this area. A district park which is linked to a nature reserve completes the mixture of housing, employment, educational and leisure facilities.
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Context
Source: Stadt Erlangen
At the beginning of the 1990s, Erlangen (pop. 105.291) was confronted with a significant drain of its residents – particularly young families – to the surrounding areas. Following the 1993 announcement by the US military that the so-called “Ferris Barracks” in Erlangen were to be given up, the planning of an urban district near the city centre began. In 1997, the Town of Erlangen purchased the conversion area from the Federal Ministry of Finance. In the new district “Röthelheimpark”, areas were mobilized for business, trade, housing, recreation and higher education without needing to claim exterior settlement spaces.
Project description
Source: Stadt Erlangen
The council established the „Project Group Röthelheimpark“ in order to be able to control the entire planning and development process from one source. The project group then elaborated the objectives for the mixed use district in a workshop with political and administration representatives, independent experts and committed residents. A competition was held for urban planning ideas in keeping with these objectives in 1994. The outline plan passed by the town council in 1996 was based on the winning design.
The first measure involved redeveloping and converting the landmarked barrack buildings. Some of them now house new premises for the Nürnberg-Erlangen University, while others were turned into lofts and apartments. Institutes for medical engineering and medicine have concentrated in close proximity to the high school.
This development was pioneered by the company Siemens Medical Solutions, which built a factory with 2.000 employees, a business casino and a training centre on the site. In addition to this, buildings for community use including nurseries, schools and a sports hall were built.
Starting in 1997, the first housing estate was built as part of the Bavarian state programme “Settlement Models”. Multi-storey residential buildings, terraced houses, atrium buildings and point blocks were constructed in a very dense arrangement. It was possible to render the entire site a car-free zone as the parking spaces are located in several parking pallets at the estate periphery. Building permits for further residential buildings have been granted in the last few years.
Most of the residential buildings border on a centrally located, wedge-shaped green area. This green space links the district centre with the nature reserve established on the former army training ground of the Ferris barracks. In combination with the conterminal forest „Buckenhofer Forst“, the green space network lends the district a high recreational value.
As the area’s owner, the council of Erlangen strives to create a high urban design quality and respond to the respectively prevailing market situations by actively controlling the development. To comply with the flexibility required for this, legally binding land-use plans are only drawn up for small sections of the district at a time.
In the meantime up to 85 % of the area is developed and covered with buildings.
Project chronology
Year | Event |
---|---|
1993 | The project group “Röthelheimpark” is established |
1994 | Urban design ideas competition |
1996 | The outline plan is passed by the town council |
1997 | Purchase of conversion area |
1997-2003 | Conversion of barrack buildings for university and housing use |
1997 | Construction start on first housing estate |
2001 | Establishment of the nature reserve |
2002 | Opening of the district park (green area) |
2004 | Beginning of operation of the business casino |
2008 | Induction and opening of the “Franconiia International School” |
End of 2009 | Allocation of real estate for the last residential quarter for the present |
Aims
Source: Stadt Erlangen
- Development of an urban district featuring high-quality housing
- Mixed use of housing, business, offices, services and trade, as well as community needs and university facilities
- Reducing the resident drain to surrounding areas
- „District of short distances“
- Integration of landmarked buildings in the new district
- Establishment of a nature reserve which is linked to the surrounding area
Types of measures
Source: Stadt Erlangen
- Formation of a project group
- Urban design ideas competition
- Urban development outline plan
- Conversion of landmarked barrack buildings for housing and the university
- Creation of a centrally located green space
- Nature protection on former army training ground
- Interlinking green and nature protection areas with the adjoining forest “Buckenhofer Forst” to create one large local recreation area
- Vehicle parking pallets at the estate’s periphery
Innovations
Source: Stadt Erlangen
The development of the urban district has successfully achieved a consistent mixture of housing, business, utility, education, culture and recreation. Particularly the settlement of the medical engineering factory, the university extension, as well as the construction of the model housing estate have conveyed the spatial proximity of various functions.
Sources
- http://www.erlangen.de
- Stadt Erlangen, Projektgruppe Röthelheimpark (Erlangen Council, Project Group Röthelheimpark) (n. y.): Der Röthelheimpark. Eine Konversion - ein neuer Stadtteil (Röthelheimpark. A Conversion – a New District.). Erlangen
- Kallmayer, Herbert (1998): Vom Wettbewerb zum Bebauungsplan. Erlangen "Röthelheimpark" (From Competition to Legally Binding Land-Use Plan. Erlangen “Röthelheimpark”). In: Oberste Baubehörde im Bayerischen Staatsministerium des Innern (Supreme Building Authority in the Bavarian Ministry of Internal Affairs): Siedlungsmodelle. Ideen - Konzepte – Planungen (Settlement Models. Ideas, Concepts, Plans). Munich.
Further information
The projekt site ist to be found at postal code: 91052 - town: Erlangen - street: Allee am Röthelheimpark.
Poject site on Google-Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/EH5JiSRhcXN2
Last update: 31.01.2018