The renovation of buildings listed as historical monuments is usually linked to strict conditions and intensive planning processes with the conservation authorities responsible. There is a thin line between preserving the basic appearance while fulfilling the wishes of clients for up-to-date equipment and preservation of value, and this can only be guaranteed in responsible treatment of resources and cooperation with conservation authorities. Our competence is respected and gives us planning security and maximum benefit of optimal building permission at an early stage.
First mentioned in a document, the ‘Häuserbuch’ of 1521, the ‘Schiffmacherhaus’ at the southwest end of the Viktualienmarkt is a typical relict on the mediaeval plot structure of the old centre of Munich. Before the renovation, the façade could be traced back to a series of modifications. The roof structure also did not correspond to its historical cubic volume but was a makeshift from the post-war years. The construction measures taken can be seen as an upgrading, a clearly modern addition in terms of heritage protection for the building and its usage on the one hand and for the urban space situation on the other. The vertical extension forms a successful symbiosis with existing material. The new ‘Schiffmacherhaus’ fits into the ensemble with restraint but also with a certain grandeur. The award in the 2010 façade competition of the City of Munich speaks for itself.
A good example of the more recent monument conservation is the listed former Gruner + Jahr publishing house on the outer Alster in Hamburg. In this distinctive listed building from the 1970s, five storeys have been renovated to form a new working environment for an internationally active law firm. Due to the terrace form of the rebuilding, every office level has been allocated generously dimensioned external areas. The original entrance hall, designed by Verner Panton for what was originally planned as a hotel and then changed to an office building before it was opened, was adapted and sensitively developed to meet today’s requirements.
