HauptwacheZukunft

Reason for planning

In 2011, the Hauptwache, along with 50 other projects, was by resolution of the City Council, included in the “More Beautiful Frankfurt” program.
In the years that followed, feasibility studies were carried out, assessments of the load-bearing capacity of the underground floors commissioned, and a competition held for the design of the ground-level plaza. In the final instance, the City had to abandon the idea of closing the striking funnel-shaped stairwell owing to the technical and financial risks.

The long-term planning objective is now to redesign the Hauptwache while preserving the large stairwell leading down to the B Level. This can only be tackled in small steps, however as before anything else can happen, Frankfurter Verkehrsgesellschaft VGF must modernize the technical infrastructure below the ground. The ventilation, electrical, heating, and fire protection facilities of the LRT and subway system, of the retail outlets, and the circulation concourses need to be renewed, as they are about 50 years old. This will take around 10–15 years. To bridge this long period, the focus is on an interim design of the ground-level plaza.

Today, the Hauptwache is a large, relatively empty area that serves numerous uses, such as markets, civic protests, concerts. This established use competed, however, with public interest in relaxation and leisure, for example. For this reason, the City of Frankfurt Dept. of Planning has resolved to explore the long-term redesign of the Hauptwache together with the city’s citizens. What does the Hauptwache mean for Frankfurt and what should it be for Frankfurt going forwards? What do Frankfurt’s citizens want as regards how it should be used and what visions are there for it? The results of the civic participation sessions will be inputted both into the expected interim design and into the plaza’s later conversion.