Dominik Hennecke
Grashopper. FH Aachen (Germany)
The Grashopper is Revitilasation through backbuilding, rebuilding and building of an undefinded urban space fromt the 70ties in the city centre of Aachen.
A variety of already existing functions like a school, bus station, „Klangbrücke“ which contains a music school, library and offices have potencial to activate each other by a redefinition of the area. The bus station is minimized to 2 lines, which are sufficient to keep up with the frequence. A office in the southeastern part and a hotel in the southwest are the southern End of the area. Tthey form an impression similar to the rocks at the english coast.
The busstation moves towards the Peterstraße, because of its sloped light-ceiling. Other functions like the Aseag travel centre are situated in glas cubes between street and station. The nothern end is marked by a structure which contains a public school and is directly connected to the „Klangbrücke“ with its music school. Some rooms like cafeteria and lecture room are used together in order to establish a higher frequence between both.
The public school also works as a border to the zoned green landscape, which covers the roof of the former busstation as well as the facade and roof of the lateral buldings to create a relaxing park-emotion. With the smaller „canyons“ in between and the long staircase, the landscape moves down towards the Kurplatz and streets at ground level.
The Kurplatz is reactivated by redirecting some of the traffic to the Sandkaulstraße and an appartment building which targets the outline of the Kurhaus in order to give the Kurhaus the possibility to take effect on the place. The space is also narrowed by the appartment building to define itself as a place.
Structurally the Grashopper takes advantage of the already existing structure and expands it where needed.
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