Munich — A small neighborhood square featuring a market, cafe, and shops as a vibrant center, a continuous green belt with numerous large trees, and a multi-story parking garage topped with a rooftop sports field: this is how architects from bogevischs (Munich) and landscape planners from grabner huber lipp (Freising) envisioned the new residential complex at the corner of Neuherbergstraße and Rockefellerstraße. The two firms emerged as the joint winners of the architectural competition for the redevelopment and densification of the block.
Their sketches, along with the works of the second and third-place participants, were presented to the public at the Milbertshofen cultural center. Affordable housing is set to be built on approximately 19 hectares between Panzerwiese and the Ernst von Bergmann barracks. The Federal Agency for Real Estate Management (BImA) has planned to construct 650 apartments in Milbertshofen, intending to rent them primarily to federal employees at a subsidized rate of approximately twelve euros per square meter.
BImA Focuses on Modular Construction
To ensure the settlement can be built as quickly as possible, BImA has opted for modular and serial construction. Only four different house types are planned, which is intended to save both costs and time. Doris Schönberger-Rau, a housing development officer at BImA, noted that work on the first section could begin as early as next year.
Michael Bacherl, head of Munich’s urban planning department and a jury member, emphasized that authorities intended to apply a new accelerated construction regime initiated by the federal government. He praised the winning project as a moderate addition to the existing area, stating that the plan showed great respect for the current housing stock, preserved the character of the former American settlement, and considered the interests of long-term residents. Most trees, he added, should remain in place. Furthermore, the jury was impressed by the planned resource-saving construction method, which includes partially preserving and reusing existing foundations and basements.
District Committee Head Favors Significantly More Apartments
Fredi Hummel-Haslauer (SPD), chairman of the Milbertshofen-Am Hart district committee, served as a member of the jury. He considered the project suboptimal and would have preferred to see significantly more apartments. The neighborhood leader explained: “For me, construction takes priority over a tree.”
In its tender, BImA requested between 50,000 and 100,000 square meters of living space. The 650 apartments sit only slightly above the lower limit. Hummel-Haslauer argued: “More was possible here.” He could not understand the reasoning against increasing the number of units out of respect for current residents. In his view, residents who have lived there for 30 years would not be displaced, but their environment would change—and for the better.
Planned Parking Structures Fail to Convince Neighborhood Leader
Additionally, he advocated for more parking spaces. The two planned multi-story parking garages did not convince Hummel-Haslauer. He stated: “People want to park as close to their own front door as possible, rather than walking long distances.” Experience has shown that such garages are not particularly popular, as seen in the Ramersdorf settlement at Bad-Schachener-Straße / corner of Innsbrucker Ring, where the parking facility is not even half full.
Source: Merkur
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