The Nassauische Heimstätte | Wohnstadt (NHW) group of companies awarded the Paul Bode Prize for students of the University of Kassel for the second time.

Second place was not awarded, third place went to Christin Schäfer and Eric Schmidt as well as Aridona Kuliqi and Cornelius Böttger. Luisa Königer and Fridjof Schmidt as well as Fryderyk Rhein and Lukas Schwirowski received commendations. The jury, consisting of NHW Managing Director Monika Fontaine-Kretschmer, Bernd Peuster (NHW, Head of Acquisition North), Christof Nolda (Kassel City Planning Council), Prof. Marc Frohn (FAR Architects Berlin; KIT Karlsruhe Head of the Department of Space + Design), Sebastian Stürzel (Bankert Linker & Hupfeld), Ulrike Pape (pape + pape, Kassel) and jury chair Prof. Andrea Wandel (Wandel Lorch Götze Wach Architekten, Saarbücken/Frankfurt; Trier University of Applied Sciences), reached their decision after a meeting lasting several hours. The prize, endowed with 10,000 euros, is sponsored by the NHW and awarded jointly with the Faculty of Architecture, Urban Planning and Landscape Planning (ASL) at the University of Kassel. A total of 17 projects were submitted, most of which were worked on by two students in a team.

Melissa Krug and Necati Karalar impressed the jury with their innovative concept. Thanks to their interdisciplinary approach, which combines urban planning and architecture, they succeeded in leveraging the potential, taking up existing structures and creating a new place in the urban landscape. “We are very happy that our approach was so well received,” said the winning duo. "The area presents a number of difficulties, such as the sparse access to the harbor and a complex and unclear existing structure that had to be redefined. Facing this difficulty as an interdisciplinary team made it an exciting challenge."

"We have seen many outstanding contributions today. The Paul Bode Prize is a benefit for the students, who gain practical experience, but also for us as a company, as we can absorb many fresh impulses and transfer them into our daily work,” said NHW Managing Director and jury member Monika Fontaine-Kretschmer at the award ceremony in the university's new ASL building on Thursday. "The creation of sustainable urban districts that combine living and working spaces is an important task of our time. The aim of the brief for Kassel Harbour was therefore to develop proposals for solutions that impressively demonstrate various implementation options - and we really succeeded."

“The Paul Bode Prize allows students of architecture, landscape architecture and planning as well as urban and regional planning to work together as a team - across all three institutes - and develop solutions on an equal footing,” adds Prof. Frank Kasprusch from the Institute of Architecture. "We see the prize as a laboratory for the neighborhood of tomorrow. This is reflected in the competition brief, among other things. We are looking for answers to the burning questions of living together, the interplay of working environments and residential models."

The department of Design and Sustainable Building, lead by Prof. Kasprusch, has awarded this year's Paul Bode Prize and published the theme “Kassel Harbour Experiment” in coordination with the NHW. "A very broad field of architectural, urban and landscape planning solutions has emerged that bear a clear signature and are consistently dedicated to the district of tomorrow. I would like to thank all participants for their outstanding work, congratulate the students of the award-winning projects and thank the NHW for its support."

Wanted: Ideas for the port of Kassel

The port is located close to the city center in the north-eastern part of Kassel, but is not perceived as part of the city. This is partly due to inadequate connections, recreational use in the form of a marina that is not accessible to the general public and monofunctional commercial uses with no public infrastructure. In many European cities, the port areas have been and are being converted into attractive urban districts. Mixed use, densification and quality of stay determine the degree of success and acceptance. This potential has been identified for the port of Kassel, but has not been structured in terms of overarching planning or embedded in forward-looking urban development. The aim of the Paul Bode Prize 2022 was to develop this potential with the aim of creating a dense, multifunctional urban quarter with a high quality of stay, diversity of use and social mix. The planning also had to take into account monument protection, flood scenarios and improved pedestrian and cycle path connections to the Wesertor urban quarter.

The winning entries will be on display at the Studierendenhaus at Universitätsplatz 10 in Kassel until November 17.

Background: Paul Bode Prize

Supporting young people in their education is one of the pillars of the social commitment of the Nassauische Heimstätte | Wohnstadt Group. The Paul Bode Prize is awarded every two years to students at the University of Kassel and is intended to promote the students' professional and political engagement with new tasks in the spirit of socially oriented housing development and urban planning. The focus is on ensuring a secure and socially responsible housing supply for broad sections of the population and taking into account those looking for housing who have difficulties in finding accommodation due to their personal circumstances. The focus is on the city of Kassel and its region. Experimental, visionary housing and hybrid concepts and the associated open spaces are honored.