Description

Part of the collective custom build project already existed prior to the initial design and the project therefore already needed to accommodate various quite different wishes from the outset. Today, the residents include singles, couples, small families and large families aged between 6 and 66 who live in apartments ranging from 43 to 210m². Some of the apartments can be subdivided or joined together to respond to changing family constellations. One apartment is jointly owned and could be occupied by a live-in carer if needed. The compact form of the building ensures that enough of the site remains for a generous communal garden. Other communal facilities include a sauna, workshop and multipurpose room with kitchen.

Despite the difficult planning conditions and relatively tight budget, the architects developed clearly arranged floor plans with high quality interiors. The apartments on the lower floors are maisonette apartments with open gallery spaces, creating a sense of light and space on the ground floor. Wood floors and ceramic tiles give the apartments an individual character. The external appearance of the building is restrained with discreet detailing.

The architects were the initiators of the project and searched for potential partners among their circle of friends and acquaintances with the help of a brochure detailing their project idea and a preliminary design. By mid-2007, a core group had come together by word of mouth with three further partners joining as the project planning advanced. During the planning phase the group met every month, during the construction phase every two weeks. Today, the group, now a home ownership association, meets every 1 to 2 months.

The architects discovered a plot belonging to the city and then approached the local authorities. The city’s Property Administration Department agreed to the proposed use and made the site available to the collective custom build project in the form of a leasehold arrangement.

The possibility of using the site was established in late 2006 and initial preliminary plans and ideas were drawn up for the collective custom build project. This was then used to recruit potential partners for the group. By mid-2007 a “core group” of six parties formed a civil law partnership (GbR). The design was developed and submitted for planning permission in March 2008. Construction was initially delayed by various problems (clearing of the site by the city, financial crisis, rising cost of building) but in September 2009 the site was finally leased and construction began soon after in November 2009.

Privately financed. Frankfurt is one of the most expensive cities in Germany for residential property and one needs to be sufficiently ambitious and knowledgeable to secure a site with sufficient space for a garden so near to the centre and its historical ring of parks with good public transport connections. The project was initiated by an architect couple who discovered the site in a rear courtyard and developed a design that successfully contributes to raising the density of the inner city. With considerable personal commitment and dedication, the building collective succeeded in converting a long-vacant site into energy-efficient housing that takes into account the needs of both families and senior citizens

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Originally published in: Annette Becker, Laura Kienbaum, Kristien Ring, Peter Cachola Schmal, Bauen und Wohnen in Gemeinschaft / Building and Living in Communities, Birkhäuser, 2015.