project management for concept design, schematic design and permission planning for the partial demolition, renovation and new construction of an office and hotel building for GRAFT architects

On the grounds of the Sheraton Berlin Grand Hotel Esplanade (1986, Jürgen Sawade), a new ensemble comprising a refurbished hotel and an office building is being developed. The eastern wing of the existing structure will be preserved, comprehensively modernised, and continue to operate as a hotel. The southern wing, along with parts of the ground floor, will make way for a new building.

The new office building adjoins the hotel section and extends, in boundary-aligned construction, all the way to the Lützowufer. This restores the block configuration of the historic Dörnberg Triangle, thereby re-establishing clear urban edges along Lützowstraße, Lützowplatz and Lützowufer, in continuity with the surrounding block structures. At the same time, a series of terraced setbacks opens the new building ensemble towards the Landwehr Canal, creating a green plaza with landscaped terraces, courtyards and roof gardens. This landscape design connects the built form to the public realm and provides visual links to the water and the city. At the same time, the long block frontage is articulated and responds to distinctive neighbouring buildings such as the Bauhaus Archive and the Villa von der Heydt.

The varied thematic planting of the terraces on each level creates, in aggregate, a diverse vegetation structure across different heights on large flora and fauna steps. Beginning with the canal’s waterside zone and its planned wetland flora, the greenery extends upwards through the stepped building volumes to the upper roof and terrace levels, where the planting evokes the image of a verdant, blooming mountain landscape.

The terraces and rooftop areas provide valuable, multifunctional spaces for the office users and hotel guests alike – offering opportunities for work, movement, sport and play, gastronomy, as well as contemplative and restorative outdoor retreat.

In the lower courtyards above the underground car park and the ground floor, shaded and moist garden landscapes planted with mosses and ferns are planned, interspersed with large moisture-loving bald cypress trees.

The ground and first floors will accommodate new public uses such as fitness facilities, conference areas, and a restaurant opening onto Lützowstraße and Lützowplatz. In this way, the ensemble is both functionally and programmatically integrated into the surrounding neighbourhood.

Architecturally, the new building features a modular façade composed of conically tapering frames. Recessed loggias and façade elements of varying depths create a lively, almost textile-like effect. The rational grid of the office façade thus begins to subtly ripple across the building envelope like fabric or clothing. Terraces and setbacks lend the structure a human scale and strong spatial quality. In contrast to Sawade’s existing L-shaped building, which presents itself as quite hermetic at its ends and somewhat uninviting in the urban context, the new development not only opens up programmatically to the neighbourhood but also activates and opens its façade towards the Lützowplatz to the west.

The refurbished hotel wing remains recognisable in its original structure but receives a new ceramic façade cladding. Windows and proportions are carefully renewed in respect of the 1986 architecture. Narrow openings in the north façade offer views towards the canal and Tiergarten. An additional rooftop extension adopts the design language of the new façade, seamlessly integrating the existing structure into the overall ensemble.

A comprehensive drainage concept has been developed for the roof surfaces: all roofs function as retention roofs, discharging into a cistern and infiltration trench once the storage level is reached. The system is smart-controlled and can return water for irrigation as needed, thus fully meeting the requirements of the “sponge city” principle. The building is connected to district heating. The office spaces in the new building are designed with radiators and concrete core activation within the reinforced concrete ceilings. In accordance with the Berlin Photovoltaic Act, photovoltaic systems are planned on the roof surfaces, positioned to avoid interfering with the usability of the rooftop terraces. A LEED Platinum certification is planned for the building ensemble.