Stuttgart, Germany
Our proposal for the new quarter at the Karlsplatz in Stuttgart explores and reinforces four aspects characteristic of the urban qualities of the site such as: the sequence of public squares; the definition of the squares by prominent buildings; the diagonal view corridors; and the permeability of the pedestrian ground level.
Karlsplatz, the only square in the city lacking a prominent architectural counterpoint, will be redefined by the proposed new hotel building with its delicately tesselated façade. The hotel lobby and a new restaurant on the ground level will add life to the square throughout the day and evening. Half of the hotel rooms on the upper floors will offer views of the square as well as the two castles, Altes Schloss and Neues Schloss, on the opposite sides of the square. The spa and swimming pool on the top level of the hotel seem to float above Karlsplatz.
New buildings for four state ministries fill out the blocks next to and behind the hotel. These office buildings mediate the height of the hotel building and the adjacent department store. The offices are distributed around a skylight-covered atrium space with central meeting areas and other communal functions.
The commercial retail areas on the ground level are permeated by open arcades and shopping corridors extending the adjacent Market Hall into the network of streets. Additionally three underground floors offer public and government parking facilities.
A consistent structural grid, partially integrated into the façade, an efficient mechanical system based to a large extent on renewable energies, and a high performance curtain wall façade with exterior sunshades provide economics of construction and maintenance.