Urban planning reimagined II
Case Study No. 2. Change of Land Use in the City Centre of Böblingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. IBA'27 and the Development of the Werkbund Idea.
In 1927, the first model Werkbund housing estate was built on the Weissenhof hill in Stuttgart. It was conceived as an exhibition presenting the functional principles of modern architecture and new technical possibilities in mass construction. The completed and furnished buildings were intended to win over potential users to new ideas in residential design.
From the Werkbund idea grows the IBA’27 programme, currently being realised in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The programme envisages 13 large-scale projects in Stuttgart and the surrounding area. Unlike the 1927 exhibition, these are not to be showpiece buildings, but fully functional, experimental building complexes. Through them, new ideas in urbanism, functional planning, urban regeneration, and housing typologies are being tested. Each project attempts to grapple with the challenges of an uncertain future, taking into account social, climatic, and economic factors.
One of the programme’s projects is located in Böblingen, a town situated 20 km south-west of Stuttgart. The site earmarked for the urban experiment is currently occupied by a post office building constructed in 1978. In line with the brief, the existing building is to be demolished in its entirety and replaced by a new development. The goals for the new scheme were developed on the basis of a series of public discussions with local residents and conclusions drawn from expert workshops. The overarching shared objective is the creation of a regional “magnet.” The key components of the experiment are to be a varied and flexible functional programme, high-quality architecture, and well-considered, universally accessible public spaces.
The framework established by the project promoter, following public dialogue and expert workshops, is exceptionally flexible. Floor area ratio from 2.5 to 3.5. A landmark element in the form of a high-rise tower is to fall within the range of 22 to 60 metres. It is envisaged that up to 60% of the complex’s floor area should be given over to residential use — including rental housing, housing for older residents, housing cooperatives, townhouses, and conventional flats. The remainder is to be filled by commercial functions, shared-use spaces, cultural facilities, and spaces serving educational purposes.
