City planning competition for Max Becker site in Cologne takes shape

June 2022

Over the next few years, a new urban quarter will be created in the west of Cologne on the site of the former Max Becker site and the adjacent RheinEnergie site. A lively mixed-use development consisting of living, working, culture, education, energy and local amenities as well as extensive green spaces is planned for this area. In cooperation with the city of Cologne and RheinEnergie AG, we launched a two-stage architectural and open space planning competition for the entire site, which covers a total area of 17.3 hectares. A total of 15 international urban planning and architectural firms in collaboration with selected landscape architects were invited to submit their proposals for the first phase of the competition.

On June 15, 2022, a 20-member jury consisting of external expert judges, representatives of the administration and politics, and colleagues from us and Rheinenergie selected six concepts for the second phase. On June 23, 2022, we invited the public to view the urban planning designs and enter into dialog. A large number of interested citizens came together at the Rufffactory in Cologne-Ehrenfeld:

Until June 30, it is also possible to view the drafts in analog form at the Lindenthal district town hall or online at www.dialog-max-becker-areal.de. Questions, ideas and suggestions can be submitted in both ways.

What happens next

In a second phase of the competition, the architectural studios will revise their designs after receiving feedback from the jury and the public. These will be presented in a final public presentation on September 26, 2022, in Cologne´s Rufffactory. On October 18, 2022, the final winning team will be selected by the jury. After completion of the competition, the development plan procedure will follow.

More info at www.pan.de.