This Project is my Master Thesis.

During the last decade Bremerhaven has changed from a city with occasional visitors into a tourist-magnet. The city is anxious to change the use of empty lots and to delete these places out of the townscape. For example the city-center and the Alter und Neuer-Hafen received a new look and a new name called “Havenwelten”.Today more and more tourists are interested in these areas and support the change.

Also hundreds of new students arrive in Bremerhaven every year to study maritime courses of study. Although the number of students increased in the last few years the number of given dormitories which afford a good connection, a cheap accommodation or community did not.Statistics say that 10% of all students live in a dorm. The HS-Bremerhaven has about 2.800 students, but the city actually just accommodates about 130 of them. Until today Bremerhaven has a shortage amount of dormitories, that I want to change.

The perfect place

The perfect area for this project to be built is the lot at the corner Columbusstrasse and Am Radarturm. At this moment the Hochschule is using the area as a parking lot for their employees. Next to the parking lot is a building of the HS; the C-Tract.Creating a form that fits into the surroundings was another important point in this project. One of my form finding ideas was to create an atrium between the C-Tract and my new building. The area should be use as a campus, as a place to relax and to meet friends. By constructing a building between the campus area and the main road I isolated the inside from outside influences. The round silhouette of the building reflects the form of the lot and you can read the inner use on the outside of the fassade.

The Building

The lower level offers a café, rooms the students can use to work and also rooms for meetings or group-work. The upper level accommodates the students. Every room has its own bathroom and built-in furniture. Three shared kitchens on each level and other community rooms like a TV Room and a relaxing/reading area supports the everyday life in this community. The student rooms are arranged on the outside wall of the building and large windows ensure that a maximum amount of daylight can penetrate the rooms.The two Inner-yards in the wide areas of the building also spend daylight in the floor areas.