An inclusive concept for more communal life Exemplary building in Germany: the Passerelle in Tübingen, designed by a+r Architekten, offers a home to people with or without a migration background. The Passerelle, a social project for refugees and non-refugees, already received the Tübingen Integration Award in 2019. Now their new building has been recognised yet another time: as one of the 37 selected projects for exemplary building in Germany in the framework of the New Leipzig Charter, which advocates for community-oriented, integrated and sustainable urban development. a+r Architekten, an architectural firm with offices in Stuttgart and Tübingen, designed the building for the Passerelle in Tübingen’s Südstadt district and developed a coherent concept for communal living. The Passerelle in Tübingen — the new building of the district-based housing, action and health project for refugees and non-refugees in Tübingen’s Südstadt — was recently selected as one of 37 projects that stand for exemplary building in Germany and implement the innovative approaches of the New Leipzig Charter (NLC). The project is supported by the Institut für Gesundheitsförderung und Sozialforschung x-igs e.V. (an association for health promotion and social research) together with volunteers, interested parties and members of a private building cooperative. “Passerelle” means transition and describes the guiding principle of the initiative: according to the ideas of those responsible for the project, “diverse transitions are to be made possible” in joint activities – carpentry, pottery, gardening and many other pursuits. Educational offers, health promotion, joint festivities and creative workshops, all this takes place in the group rooms of the Tübingen-based initiative and supports people in gaining a foothold in society. The building on Hechinger Strasse, designed by a+r Architekten, is located directly on the district square and was occupied in autumn 2019. It provides 13 flats with different floor plans and communal project and workshop rooms. Also in 2019, the Passerelle project received the Tübingen Integration Award, which is presented by the City of Tübingen for projects that promote integration and equal opportunities for people with and without a migration background. This was particularly pleasing to the building owners, who wanted affordable housing for both refugees and non-refugees. The proportion of refugees was to be around 80 per cent, and the building was to support the integration process and coexistence. Robust and of high quality “In this context, it is important for us to emphasise that we wanted to build with simple and cost-effective materials and at the same time achieve a robust and high-quality building,” says managing director and project manager Walter Fritz. In addition, attention was paid to sufficient noise protection, because the building is located on a busy through road. a+r Architekten opted for a clear building structure in reinforced concrete skeleton construction and infills with timber frame elements. “The façade has a sophisticated appearance,” comments Walter Fritz. The inner courtyard, which the residents of the Passerelle use and design together with two other housing projects, serves as a connecting element; a garden is in the planning stage. “All those involved in the project wanted urban life to unfold in this place,” explains the architect. Building in dialogue According to Walter Fritz, the association was also intensively involved in the design of the common rooms. This basic idea of “building in dialogue” is also an essential planning approach of a+r Architekten. In this respect, the architects and clients are in agreement with the core statements of the New Leipzig Charter, which states, among other things, that urban development should be made a matter involving everyone: “Projects and programmes should be developed together with the citizens. This is expressed in the consistent orientation towards the common good and the responsibility of cities in the fields of climate protection and environmental justice.”* Data + Facts Project period: 2017 - 2019 Client: Baugemeinschaft passerelle GbR Location: Tübingen / Germany Size details: Cubic volume: 4,760m³ Usable floor space: 1,053m² 12 flats, workshop, project room Photographs: Marcus Ebener Exemplary Project – 50th Anniversary Year of Urban Development Promotion Tübingen Integration Award 2019: https://www.tuebingen.de/6715.html#/27108 *New Leipzig Charta https://wm.baden-wuerttemberg.de/fileadmin/redaktion/m-wm/intern/Publikationen/Bauen/neue_leipzig_charta_20210121-digital-komprimiert.pdf (German only)   Your press contact Heike Bering bering*kopal, Büro für Kommunikation t +49(0)711 7451 759 15 heike.bering@bering-kopal.de www.bering-kopal.de Architects contact a+r Architekten GmbH Rotebühlstraße 89/2 D 70178 Stuttgart t +49(0)711 722355-31 f +49(0)711 722355-22 pr@ackermann-raff.de www.ackermann-raff.de 1 The Passerelle in Tübingen was recently selected as one of 37 projects that stand for exemplary building in Germany and implement the innovative approaches of the New Leipzig Charter (NLC). Photo: Marcus Ebener 2 The new building of the neighbourhood-based housing, action and health project for refugees and non-refugees was designed by a+r Architekten. Photo: Marcus Ebener 3 The Passerelle already received the Tübingen Integration Award in 2019 and was first occupied by people with and without a migrant background in autumn 2019. Photo: Marcus Ebener 4 a+r Architekten opted for a clear building structure in reinforced concrete skeleton construction and infills with timber frame elements. The plaster façade has a sophisticated appearance in different shades of green. Photo: Marcus Ebener 5 The Passerelle designed by a+r Architekten also features a roof garden. The building is designed to promote joint activities and make it easier for migrant people to integrate. Photo: Marcus Ebener 6 In addition to 13 flats with different floor plans and spacious balconies, the building provides communal project rooms and workshops. Photo: Marcus Ebener 7 The Passerelle has a high-quality appearance and was built using simple and cost-effective materials. In addition, attention was paid to sufficient noise protection, because the building is located on a busy through road. On the east side, the building section was designed to allow for vertical extension. Photo: Marcus Ebener 8 Site plan of the Passerelle in Tübingen’s Südstadt district. The building is located on Hechinger Strasse directly on the district square. Illustration: a+r Architekten 9 Ground floor plan. Illustration: a+r Architekten 10 Plan of 1st - 2nd floor. Illustration: a+r Architekten 11 Plan of 3rd floor. Illustration: a+r Architekten About a+r Architekten a+r Architekten stand for solid, environmentally compatible and future-oriented architecture with impressive expertise in the field of sustainable building — also in existing building contexts. Founded in 1985 by Professor Gerd Ackermann and Professor Hellmut Raff, the office with branches in Stuttgart and Tübingen has around 100 employees and is today headed by Professor Hellmut Raff, Oliver Braun, Florian Gruner, Alexander Lange and Walter Fritz. a+r Architekten mainly build for public clients, industry and commerce, municipal housing companies and social institutions. The office focuses on appropriate, ecological, functional and the resulting innovative construction methods and has been awarded prestigious prizes for this approach: most recently, DAM Prize 2020, Exemplary Construction Award 2020 by the Baden-Württemberg Chamber of Architects, “best architects 2020” and first place in the Competitionline Ranking 2019/20 as the most successful competition office in German-speaking countries. www.ackermann-raff.de Instagram