Recognition award for schneider+schumacher

In Offenbach am Main, the open space between the main station, bus station, the bunker, signal box and the old Catholic church is due to be reconfigured. In a competition to plan this open space the design submitted by schneider+schumacher and Carla Lo Landscape Architects has won a recognition award. Their concept proposes an urban square which creates a centre for the area around the station and the adjacent flats, is reminiscent of the historic Jewish cemetery, and provides space for a variety of communal, cultural and social activities.

The orientation of the new development and its distinctive plinth design continue the formal language of the existing buildings. Together, the buildings form an ensemble aligned with the tracks. The new development knits the squares into their city context, while ground floor uses enliven the surrounding area. The jury welcomed ‘… how this very independent submission approaches the complex task in quite a relaxed and playful way. In particular, the idea of depicting the perimeter of the cemetery in its entirety in the pavement surfaces is seen as fundamentally positive. (…) The offset created between the southeast and southwest row of buildings on Bismarckstrasse generates a good urban structure’.