A car-free neighbourhood is taking shape in Derendorf, bringing together owner-occupied apartments, subsidised and student housing, commercial spaces, and contemporary services. The name maxfrei captures the essence of maximum freedom—the liberty residents and workers experience within the quarter and the broader neighbourhood. It also honours the site's history as the former Ulmer Höh' prison complex. To express the neighbourhood's diversity through architecture itself, three distinguished firms—HPP Architekten, caspar.schmitzmorkramer, and goetzenarchitekten—were commissioned to each bring their distinctive design language while maintaining cohesive design elements throughout. The result: individual buildings with unmistakable character that together form a unified, harmonious whole. Anchoring the 35,000 m² site is a former prison chapel, being reimagined by a community building group as a social and sustainable residential concept. Public green spaces featuring a playground, intimate private courtyards, and dining venues create natural gathering spaces. Additional amenities include a daycare centre, rooftop gardens, and an underground parking facility with approximately 500 spaces. Construction is expected to commence in Q4 2020, with the neighbourhood fully completed by mid-2024.

www.maxfrei-quartier.de
www.interboden.de

(Published in CUBE Düsseldorf 02|20)