River Area Frankfurt Main: Difference between revisions

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Name	Frankfurt am Main River Area
Location	Frankfurt am Main
Country	Germany
Authors	S. Pio Brown Staikidis


<googlemap version="0.9" lat="50.107093" lon="8.682203" zoom="15" width="300" height="250"> </googlemap>

Short Introduction to the Area of Study

Frankfurt is an international, dynamic and financial city with the highest towering skyscrapers silhouette of Germany, in whose streets the plurality of languages is something natural, famous for the Main River, which is the heart of the city.

The case study area extends from the historical bridge, called Eiserner Steg, to the surroundings of the old Großmarkthalle, place where the new Frankfurt Hafen park, proposed by Sinai Faust Schroll Schwarz Landscape Architects, and landscape areas of the Skytower house of the new European Central Bank, proposed by Vogt Landscape architects are being developed.

The banks of the river are the meeting place of the city, serving as a green space surrounded by museums, historical buildings and parks. It is characterized by its system of circulation, with interconnecting walkways, recreational facilities and open spaces full of contrasts, binding the modern with the traditional, the urban and the rustic associated with the life of the city, becoming an international oasis of culture, history, and landscape development.

Exercise 1: Sketching the Landscape

Time frame: October 25 - November 15, 2011

Student activities:

Creation of analytical drawings and sketches
Presentation of results

Please upload a selection of your drawings/sketches/mental maps and add them to the image gallery

Sketches and Drawings

Sketch view of Frankfurt City from the study area
Construction area of the new sky tower project and Hafen Park in the east site of the Main River in Frankfurt
View under the railway bridge, closed to the Skytower project
Study area and surroundings

Exercise 2: Landscape Layers

Frankfurt History

• 794 is the first time the royal estate of "Franconovurd" was mention.

• 1152 Frederick I. is elected German king.

• 1478 Frankfurt Fair (messe). The city is developing in the following decades to one of the most important commercial centers in Germany.

• 1585 -At the end of the Middle Ages, Frankfurt was one of the richest and most powerful commercial centers in central Germany.

• 1866 Frankfurt was annexed by the Prussians. In 1880, the Old Opera House was inaugurated.

• 1884 the first electric tram in the world was put into operation. This was in service between the Old Bridge in Frankfurt and Offenbach am Main.

• Four years later, in 1888, the main railway station, Europe's largest railway station was opened

• 1891-1912 Under Mayor Franz Adickes, Frankfurt developed into a modern industrial and commercial city.

• 1910 is the incorporation of the entire district of Frankfurt.

• 1925-1930 at the instigation of the Mayor Ludwig Landmann to Frankfurt appointed Ernst May as city architect 1925-1930 many new settlements and thus creates the "New Frankfurt".

• In 1926, the Frankfurt airport was open.

• In 1930, the station district, the union hall built as the first skyscraper in the city.

• 1933 After the local elections in March 1933, the Nazis era started

• 1943/44 downtown and old town of Frankfurt by air attacks destroyed almost completely. March 1945 U.S. troops occupy the city.

• On 18 May 1948 find in the rebuilt St. Paul's Church to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the German National Assembly.

• 1949 Frankfurt is Germany's capital almost came within a few votes.

• 1963 John F. Kennedy visited Germany and speaking on 25 June in St. Paul's Church.

• 1968 begins with the opening of the first subway line, the realization of a new transportation concept.

• 1984 begins the expansion of the museum embankment, which blossomed in subsequent years to the arts and cultural district of the city.

• 1988 Messeturm with Hammering person as a new symbol of the economic power of the metropolis since 1988 characterizes the 256 meter high tower, the fair city of Frankfurt.

• 1995In Euro Tower, the former BfG Tower, 1995 provided by the European Monetary Institute, forerunner of today's European Central Bank,

• 1997, the Commerzbank Tower, completed with 258m Europe's tallest office tower. Other "Skycraper" (Main Tower, Trianon, Main Plaza, Gallileo) follow.

• 1998 the headquarters of the European Central Bank (ECB) given to Frankfurt.

• 2000 "Urbanity" is the buzzword of the new millennium.

Study Area Biography

• 19th Century was a sloping area and storage yard for lumber.

• 1859 a railway line was opened there.

• 1908, were used as shipyard for bulk materials.

• 1940With the decline of the industrial use of the gray harbor landscape transformed into a habitat of rare plants.

• 1986 decided the city council, the industrial wasteland into a public green area between the Main and the new residential area in Ostend remodel

Historic plans showing the evolution of Frankfurt City

Frankfurt am Main: 1350.Plan of the Altstadt (Old Town) with the buildings and street names present in the time around 1350.
1572. Historical sight of the German town of Frankfurt by Georg Braun and Frans Hogenberg (between 1572 and 1618)This map shows the ancient city wall and moat that surrounded Frankfurt town
19th century. The plan show the Frankfurt City green belt where the ancient wall was once built, and demolished in the 19th Century and grassed over
1852. Was The most famous map of the city until the publication of the plan by Ravenstein in 1862.
City map in 1905. Among the most important changes in relation to the old plans is the construction of the Railway Station (Hauptbahnhof), and the railway line
City map in 1913.This map shows the expansion of the city, outside of the old protection wall perimeter, and development of new districts. 19013 Frankfurt´s population exceeds 400,000.
1946 After the II world war.Gray color show areas and buildings without damages during the second war bombing. Pink colorshow areas totally destroyed after the second war
1988.Development of one of the first skyscraper. Messeturm with Hammering Man as a new symbol of the economic power of the metropolis since 1988 characterizes the 256 meter high tower, the fair city of Frankfurt.
Present (2011). Actual view of Frankfurt city
XxxFuture skytower.JPG

future. Skytower and hafen park planned for 2013-2014. The complex was designed by the architectural firm Coop Himmelb to host the headquarters European Commerce Bank, where the old Großmarkthalle is actually located

Layers showing the evolution of the City Through the time.

Images Frankfurt City between 796 - 2011

St. Catherine's Gate, Frankfurt am Main. The gate was bulit in late 12th century and demolished 600 years later
Medieval city walls, in the early 19th Century were demolished and grassed over.Thus, in the heart of the city from the former defensive wall is well worth seeing city green belt.
World War II. About 5,500 residents killed. The largest medieval city centre in Germany destroyed, were 12,197 tons of explosives dropped on the city.
Inaugurated in October 1928. The largest building complex in the city, from October 1941 the National Socialists used the market as a collection point for the deportation of Jewish. Therefore played an important role in the genocide of the Holocaust within the machinery of destruction.
View of frankfurt Landscape in 1980
Actual Frankfurt

Landscape Layers

Image showing the different layers

The development of the new Hafen Park is going to join the unfinished Frankfurt Green belt, This project is looking to built a green circle around the City, and the Hafen Park is going to be the last chain to finish this important project.

Water Layer. Main River
Landscape/Green Area Layer. The study area has variety of trees and shrubs, the existing vegetation was planned with a landscape planting concept
Pathway Layer: Pedestrian, bicycles, walkway paths near the study area
Traffic Layer. The layer include the main roads surrounding the study area
built structure (Comercial, Residential)
Layer of the new development area of the skytower(European Central Bank)

Study Area Section

North Site Section
South Site Section

Please publish your findings here

Exercise 3: Behaviour Patterns

Time frame: December 6 - 20, 2011

How do people behave in this area? How do they use the space? What is important for them?
Observation of study area, interviews with local people and mapping of use patterns.
Preparation of short presentation

This Area is one of the greatest attractions of the city. People can walk, go jogging, or cycling with stunning views of the skyline of Frankfurt. From here the tour boats run along the Main river.

Walking
Playing
Waiting

View
Sitting
Fishing

Jogging
Walikng with dogs
Sailing

Snapshot published in 'Die Zeit'

Please publish your findings here

Exercise 4: Communication Concepts

Time frame: December 19, 2011 - January 17, 2012

Based on the different landscape assessment approaches students will develop a communication concept for their area of study
Which measures would be necessary for enhancing the awareness for the area?
Students are free to choose their method.

Frankfurt am Man "Green Battle"

'What better than a party to communicate our study area?'

'What better than a party to celebrate the vegetation in the cities!?'

In the battle participants throw green balls of green clay to each other to end completely covered with this mixture together with the field of battle. This green clay is actually a mixture of seeds and substrate after the battle the seeds accumulated in the ground of the battlefield to bring out a garden, this garden will evolve new types of plant species more resistant and less water needs.

Using the media to communicate the activity.

The person will have to register for free in the activity web page to be part of the Green Battle, this website provide information of the importance of the activity, and general information of the area where the battle is going to be handle, furthermore the web provide information about the history of the area.

The green battle would have a Facebook page, where the people could write their opinions of how to improve the activity, make new friends, groups, teams, and much more.

The field of battle.

In the area are located a target number of trees that serve as barriers for protection against the release of green mud balls on which participants can practice their aim.

The rules

The battle consist to launched green clay in the field of battle for a future garden. However, in order to make sense of the party, some rules are implemented to make the battle more complex:

-Participants should be grouped into teams.

-Each team can choose a type of plant to be representative of the group (team) in the garden.

-Each team can build an object (idol) that will lead into battle. This idol will be objective of bombardment by other teams. . The idol could have the characteristics of a giant, person or, puppet made of a porous material to retain the balls accumulated on it. These objet will become part of the garden

The result.

The green Battle generates a future garden. The garden plants grow with the teams chosen plants.

The party may be changing every year creating green spaces in lots and wasteland, can also be repeated in the same place if annual plants are used. The green battle can become a festival with international repercussions.

'So who would not like a battle like this?