By 2013, there will be a new, green urban reality in Hamburg: Balance City, a futuristic architectural development on Europe’s largest river island, right in the heart of the hanseatic city. People will live here in a perfect balance between working and leisure time that is to benefit both their productivity and equilibrium.

Balance City is a future-oriented development aimed at satisfying a variety of interests. Two public entities, the 2013 Hamburg International Garden Show (igs 2013) and IBA, are developing the new, green urban centre in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg according to the following criteria: balance between the town and the country, between young and older people, between tradition and innovation, between work and home life, and between ROI and sustainability.

The project’s macro-location is unique. One of the last undeveloped neighbourhoods right next-door to a million city in Germany has turned into an urban development lighthouse project of the new century. At the same time, Balance City is not an island for idealists, as the project emphasises the notion of intercommunication and exchange in the Greater Hamburg area and beyond. The variety of encounter opportunities is a source of pleasure as man is a social being. And people appreciate being social in Balance City.

Infrastructure arrangements – including the new layout of the B4/B75 roads to bypass the centre of Wilhelmsburger Park and the extensive modernisation of the local urban railway network – are to optimise the connection of the new development area to the city of Hamburg and the surrounding area.

Moreover, a particularly powerful living quality arises from an exceptional mixture of active leisure-time opportunities, creative natural experiences and a tremendous architecture that interconnects work, home life and nature.

A new urban centre is to be developed in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg in the context of both IBA and the 2013 International Garden Show. The two events constitute the wake-up call for an area with forty hectares of building space and 100 hectares of highly attractive parkland that is only seven minutes awayfrom Hamburg Central by urban railway. All participants in the project are to benefit from the experience of IBA and igs 2013 and from their close collaboration in developing urban projects.

A sound concept and professional partners are prerequisites for turning great ideas into a great success. IBA Hamburg GmbH is a 100 percent subsidiary of the hanseatic city of Hamburg. Within the framework of a unique state agreement (“IBA-Konvention”), the company benefits from the support of eighty institutions and organisations of the hanseatic city. This guarantees the feasibility of the ambitious targets that characterise an international building exhibition.

For the first time since international garden shows are being organised, the 2013 Hamburg event is to focus on sports and active nature/leisure-time activities. Sports and games bring people together. “Around the World in 80 Gardens” – This motto underscores the exhibition’s goal: inviting visitors to explore, discover and conquer a variety of worlds and their horticultural facets.

After the 2013 exhibition, the structures built for the event will be converted into the green dune, i.e. an innovative urban landscape made available to the 48,000 residents of Wilhelmsburg and over 1.7 million Hamburg citizens.

Sports, wellness and other leisure-time activities will all be available at the Green Dune complex – a paradise for climbing enthusiasts and water aficionados, a cosmos for everyone that is looking to find a balance between body and soul.

The hanseatic city of Hamburg performs extensive primary investments that constitute a sound foundation for subsequent private investments. The Wilhelmsburg urban railway station will be completely refurbished and modernised, a modern bridge will provide access to Wilhelmsburg East and South, and a ferry-boat will connect the new development area to Hamburg’s city centre. The many young and active people living in the neighbourhood are most likely to highly appreciate the new facilities

Offering everything that is fun all around the year is the concept of the multifunctional complex. It is possible to enjoy the Green Dune whatever the weather is.

All the more since the building’s transparent skin contributes to obliterate differences between inside and outside. It is a lot of fun to make the most of the choice of facilities on offer here: fi tness activities, dancing lessons, children’s movement centre, basketball, beach volleyball and badminton. All of the indoor areas are connected to the exterior.

Anything goes at any time without even getting wet feet. 

Modern working life leads to an increased demand for comprehensive care of the muscular system. Prevention, aftercare, rehabilitation and therapeutic services are growth markets. Modular rooms and halls provide an appropriate range of services at the

Green Dune. Short distances, bright halls and an optimistic atmosphere characterise this part of the complex.

In Hamburg, people love water. The Green Dune is not only available for swimming and splashing, but also for jumping, exercising or simply sitting back and enjoying it. Incidentally, the structure resolves the dilemma of choosing between an outdoor or indoor swimming pool: the large glass façades and the extensive transition areas from inside to outside create the impression of a perfect day at the seaside.

What could be more obvious than offering nature afi cionados, sports enthusiasts and business travellers a few days of relaxation in this green oasis near a large city? Hamburg is often referred to as Germany’s gateway to the world – and we throw the gate wide open for innovative hotel operators who understand
their trade. Hotel guests can reach Hamburg Central in seven minutes using the urban railway station just around the corner, and get to the city centre and the Landungsbrücke wharf using the nearby ferries.

The whole complex is to be developed according to an innovative modular system. All the modules are flexible in their dimensions and therefore suitable for a variety of uses. This means that investors, operators and partners alike can always re-weight their participation according to the current market situation and their new marketing concepts. Following the principle of a wandering sand dune, the complex is flexible in its structureand composition. The basic concept remains the same, however: an ideal living environment that provides users with everything they need for a fulfilled life with and in nature.

The gross floor area of the hotel amounts to approximately 7,900 sqm. The underground car park provides up to 800 parking spaces. A multifunctional hall complex of up to 4,800 sqm in size and an additional hall of up to 2,400 sqm join the hotel to the south. An investor and an operator have already developed concrete plans for complementing the Green Dune with a swimming pool (indoor area: about 3,550 sqm; outdoor area: 8,450 sqm). All in all, the Green Dune is just as lively inside as it is outside – and as attractive
today as it will be tomorrow. All the modules are of variable size.
Potential users have already expressed their interest in the sports/fitness centre, the wellness/therapy centre and the boxing centre.

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Green Dune complex is a welcome leisure-time oasis in the urban landscape of Wilhelmsburg Mitte. It is surrounded by extensive waterscapes and green spaces and located within walking distance of public transport, working areas, shopping opportunities and residential units.

Central, easily accessible and absolutely natural. The Green Dune is located right at the main entrance to the new park and at the heart of Wilhelmsburg Mitte. It is to attract the 47,000 citizens of Wilhelmsburg, as well as commuters and visitors from the attractive nearby mixed development area that associates offices for companies and public agencies on the one hand, and experimental buildings and high-class residential structures on the other. The complex is to cater for an interesting and popular atmosphere. 

1. Green Dune (hall complex with a hotel to the north and a swimming pool to the south – according tocurrent planning)
2. Climbing gym
3. High rope course
4. United Nations Park
5. Wilhelmsburg chapel/World of regions
6. Waterworlds
7. World of harbours
8. World of movement
9. World of culture
10. World of continents
11. World of nature
12. Waterworks
13. New premises of the State Agency for Urban Development and Environment
14. Wilhelmsburg town hall
15. Wilhelmsburg community centre with new ferry terminal and wharf for canoes/kayaks
16. Wilhelmsburg urban railway station/Central bus station/New bridge to the parkland
17. New “Green Stripe” (connection between wharf and parkland)
18. New wharf for ferries from Landungsbrücke wharf

The Green Dune complex is nestled between bodies of water and green areas like a mighty dune landscape. The ensemble remains particularly filigree and harmonious in its overall appearance – much like its natural counterparts on the nearby North Sea coast. Moreover, the Green Dune follows an architectural concept of integrated nature. This means that the boundary between inside and out is constantly shifting due to surprising and intelligent features.