Hamburg-Farmsen „Housing estate - trotting course“
The public and private green areas of the housing estate, on the one hand, serve a sustainable rainwater management. On the other hand, the water areas improve the quality of the residential environment as well as the recreational and design quality.
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Context
Source: bgmr Landschaftsarchitekten
In Hamburg (approx. 1,786,000 inhabitants, 2010), decentralised, semi-natural rainwater management plays an important role. This is why among other things a guideline for planners, architects, engineers and building contractors was developed. A special focus is put on using areas in the context of rainwater management.
An urban development project dealing with decentralised and semi-natural rainwater management was launched in Farmsen on the site of a former trotting course north-east of the inner city of Hamburg. At the beginning of the 1990s, the owners decided to realise a housing concept on the derelict site combining public housing with high residential quality.
In the new area, around 1,160 dwellings were created in the context of public housing as well as commercial uses and public utilities such as a block heat and power plant, a school, a day-nursery and housing for the elderly. The new buildings were contructed in a compact way of building on the oval of the former trotting course. This is why the urban planning ground plan of the former trotting course can still be detected.
Dealing with the rainwater presented a special challenge. The floodgate’s capacity was not sufficient for drainage. The subsoil of the development area mostly consists of waterproof boulder clay and till.
Percolation plants as a solution were thus impossible and retention areas had to be created.
Project description
Source: bgmr Landschaftsarchitekten
An open surface drainage system for rainwater management was created. Within a system of hollows and ditches designed according to ecological criteria, the water draining away is retained and cleaned beforehand through barrages. The rainwater then flows into two former clay brick ponds in the middle of the housing estate. Surplus water is conducted through ditches into the receiving water. The main ditches serve as retention areas.
The drainage system altogether covers 12,800 square metres of water areas, 1,660 metres of ditches, 2,540 metres of waterside areas. The ditches are partly combined with a “hard” urban and a “soft” semi-natural bank and integrated in the open space through terraced seats and bridges leading to the park. All this creates interesting contrasts between mowed lawns and lush perennials along the banks. Furthermore, the ditches in the bends of the former trotting course separate the houses from the traffic-free road and playing area thus underlining the city mansion character.
The central green space of the trotting course was preserved and together with the two ponds serves as public park and ecological rainwater management area. This double function implied that compensatory measures could be put into practice making up for the intervention into nature and landscape.
GATOR Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, a private company, is the development corporation of the development area also managing local buildings and tenants’ gardens.
Project chronology
Year | Event |
---|---|
1991 | Housing concept for former trotting course decided |
1992 | Urban and landscape planning-related ideas competition |
1997 | Construction started |
1998 | Special prize "Urban development and public space”, Architekten- und Ingenieurverein Hamburg e.V. (association for architects and engineers), and German Urban Development Award, Bank für Gemeinwirtschaft (credit institution) |
1999 | Housing estate completed |
Aims
Source: bgmr Landschaftsarchitekten
- Residential site with high value in terms of leisure and recreation
- Elevated housing quality with city mansion character
- Sustainable, ecological rainwater management
- To preserve the trotting course nature
Types of measures
Source: bgmr Landschaftsarchitekten
- Designating areas for surface drainage in the legally binding land-use plan
- Involving a limnologist in the legally binding land-use planning procedure
- Urban and landscape planning-related ideas competition
- Barrages in ditches and between ponds
- Avoiding railings by maintaining a maximum depth of water of 30 centimetres in areas close to the water
- Planting box trees next to the ponds in order to reduce the wild geese stock in the estate (geese search for large meadows with water areas)
- Thinning out the waterside areas in order to maintain a view of the water
- Removing algae as far as it prevents water drain
- Inspection rounds in January, April, October and December
- Regular control and cleaning of the about 200 outlet pipes and drainage channels
- Sludge disposal and cleaning of drainage system
Innovations
Source: bgmr Landschaftsarchitekten
The open surface drainage system is accompanied by a high demand in the residential environment thus contributing to the high quality of the housing estate.
The parallel use of the green spaces for rainwater management, recreation and playing purposes is a future-oriented contribution releasing synergy potentials in the field of urban development. The green spaces essentially compensate for the physical interventions in nature and landscape.
In the context of the legally binding land-use planning procedure, designating the water areas in good time made sense as rainwater management requires areas. Responsibility for water management in one hand is an advantage as the ditches in the whole housing estate are consistently maintained on a very high level.
Sources
- Interview on 6 October 2010 with Thomas Tradowsky, Kontor Freiraumplanung, Hamburg, Germany
- Interview on 5 October 2010 with Peter Hilscher, Wandsbek borough council, department for the economy, building and the environment
- Brochure „Zukunftsfähig – nachhaltig – ökologisch. Siedlungs- und Bauprojekte in Hamburg“ (Future-oriented - sustainable – ecological. Settlement and building projects in Hamburg”, >>download PDF, 5,2MB (in German)
- Brochure "Dezentrale naturnahe Regenwasserbewirtschaftung" (Decentralised semi-natural rainwater management), >>more information on the brochure (in German)
Further information
- HAMBURG WASSER (2010): Regenwassermanagement für Hamburg – KompetenzNetzwerk, Abschlussberichte der Teilprojekte TP1 bis TP6, Februar 2010 (in German)
HCU Hafencity Universität Hamburg (2009): Mitbenutzung von Flächen in der Regenwasserbewirtschaftung - Anhang 1 Deutschlandweite Projektbeispiele. Beitrag zum Teilprojekt 1 im Gesamtprojekt Regenwassermanagement des KompetenzNetzwerks Hamburg Wasser (in German)
The projekt site ist to be found at postal code: 22159 - town: Hamburg - street: Max-Herz-Ring 217.
Poject site on Google-Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/No4hdMB3GdS2
Last update: 12.03.2018