When a single-family house on a plot of land is demolished to build a multi-family house on it, every available square centimetre is usually used for living space. In the case of the apartment building by Berghaus Architekten from Hamm, which was planned for a private client, the opposite was the case. And not only that, because the house is exceptionally individual with all kinds of special features. It was a stroke of luck - also for the neighborhood - that the client and architects were very close to each other with their ideas and visions right from the start.

One thing was clear: the barrier-free building with ten residential units and underground parking should be as far away as possible from the neighboring development with its mix of detached and semi-detached houses and apartment buildings, have a compatible cubature so that the urban structure is preserved, and provide different sizes of apartments. The spacious, glazed stairwell with its orange-colored sculptural steel staircase also attracts attention: a meeting place that leaves no room for anonymity and at the same time makes a cultural statement. "Orange is the client's favorite color and the color of the observation towers in the award-winning Lippepark Hamm, which our office designed. He was thrilled to hear that," explains architect Jens Berghaus. On the street side, the building, with its continuous staircase glazing and the building offset, gives the impression of two large villas rather than an apartment building.

At the rear, the building has projections and recesses which, together with the parapets of the surrounding terraces, give the structure a delicate and individual appearance. At the same time, the large distance to the neighbors with plenty of greenery in between becomes clear. The built-up area has also been given back a piece of nature in the form of a green roof. The apartment sizes vary between 70, 100 and 130 m² and are each equipped with an open-plan living/dining area, two separate rooms, a guest WC including a shower and an additional en suite bathroom. All rooms have natural light and almost all have outside access - either to the garden or, on the upper floors, to balconies. The architects also designed the kitchens in the penthouse apartments. These are finished in black, creating an elegant accent to the bright, light-flooded rooms. The aesthetics of the house do not even exclude the air heat pump, which is positioned on the roof and is not noticeable.

When the client and architects look back on the planning and implementation phase, which only lasted around one and a half years, two things in particular come to mind: the blasting of functional bazookas that were found on the site and the unusual installation of the flat steel staircase balustrade. This was pulled through the staircase core using a temporary crane specially mounted on the ceiling. The flights of stairs themselves are made of reinforced concrete, which was also left visible in the ceiling area. The intermediate landings are structurally connected to the storey ceilings above, allowing the staircase to appear to float in space.

www.berghausarchitekten.de

Photos:
Roland Borgmann
www.rolandborgmann.com

(Published in CUBE Ruhr Area 03|24)