Eyes and senses engaged

Administrative Academy Extension in Moabit

The Berlin Academy of Administration occupies a former school on Turmstraße in Moabit. The listed building had outgrown its original purpose, prompting the addition of an extension completed in 2022 on the same grounds. NAK Architects Berlin handled both the design and execution (phases 2–9). The new structure is a two-storey timber building finished with zinc standing seam cladding. Positioned carefully along the southeastern edge of the garden-like courtyard, the extension preserves the existing trees. Inside, exposed timber framing creates an inviting atmosphere and supports healthy indoor climate. The thoughtful construction approach earned the building a Silver Sustainability Certificate.

The building's footprint echoes the plot's contours, forming a rectangle with an angled southern edge. While the eastern boundary closes off the structure, the western facade opens generously—with continuous glazing on the ground floor and tall, narrow windows above—toward the existing U-shaped building. A subtle inflection in the facade creates a concave recess that doubles as a welcoming forecourt for trainees.

Both the original structure and its new extension orient toward the adjacent St. John's Church via their southern facades. Seminar rooms on the upper level open onto the garden, while a covered loggia on the south side frames the church beyond. The light-filled ground floor welcomes visitors into a flexible multipurpose hall—home to electronic examinations and equipped with 100 floor boxes offering extensive connectivity for digital and traditional devices alike. The upper floor's four seminar rooms are designed to merge into a single expansive space as needed, alongside a comfortable lounge for participants of the newly established leadership academy. To maximize the approximately 325 m² per floor, sanitary facilities, technical systems, and storage are efficiently housed in the basement. Landscape planning for the outdoor areas was developed by Berlin-based Topos Landschaftsplanung.

www.nak-architekten.de