Innovative multifunctional green urban space on heavily sealed surfaces of an inner city location.
The Project
The Goal
The project aims to create an innovative multifunctional green urban space which fosters climate change adaptation measures that contribute to enhancing urban climate comfort on heavily sealed surfaces.
Local Task Force
The Verband Region Stuttgart (VRS) formerly acted as a regional coordinator whose main role was to find a partner city which could offer an appropriate location for the pilot implementation. Along the way, both the ILPOE (University of Stuttgart) and Helix Pflanzen assumed the leading role while the VRS mainly accompanied the planning and decision-making process.
The Process
The city administration started a search for the most appropriate place to implement the pilot, which was mainly based on the results of a spatial analysis (urban climate comfort zones). After a call for proposals carried out by the VRS, the city of Ludwigsburg was chosen to be the partner where the Green Living Room should be located, architects ludwig.schönle were in charge of the design and Helix Pflanzen was commissioned to build it.
Existing Dynamics
The "Regional Climate Atlas" was used as a knowledge basis to understand the local climatic situation and thus, to come up with an open space concept for the city of Ludwigsburg. This measure was meant to be a stimulating factor which encouraged the development of the climate adaptation strategy as well as an inspiration model for other projects.
The strategy also includes "future conferences", which are biannual gatherings of local groups, stakeholders, and the general public together with the administration of Ludwigsburg. During the development of the future conferences, objectives for the city were defined, being "Greening the inner city" one of the most important ones. Based on this general understanding, the administration decided to build and co-finance the Green Living Room.
Obstacles
The availability of an adequate location turned out to be very tricky and delayed the process by almost one year. In order to overcome this issue, further departments were involved in the discussion and several more locations were proposed that offered a longer-term permanence of the project.
Resources
One of the key resources needed for the implementation of the Green Living Room was the availability of an appropriate space. The project was finally located in a suitable spot within the city center for which the local authority had rights for a longer-term use.
The institutional role of the VRS and its contact with 179 Municipalities within the Stuttgart Region was crucial to find a potential partner that could implement the pilot. In addition, the construction process was based on specific technical knowledge related to living plant construction (provided by ludwig.schönle Architects) and green wall systems (provided by Helix Pflanzen).
As for economic resources, the project received funding from the City, the EU (European Union) as well as from Helix Pflanzen and counted with the support of different partner's staff (VRS, ILPOE, Ludwigsburg City, Helix Pflanzen).
Strokes of Luck
The project was very welcome due to the existing interest of the city both on the strategic level (through the development of draft ideas for "Greening the inner city") and on the planning level (through the introduction of an "Open Space development Plan" and a "Climate Change Adaptation Strategy").
The Achievements
Short-term results
The Green Living Room is already established and has been highly valuated as an attractive open space intervention that provides citizens with a fresh resting spot within the dense urban fabric.
Long-term benefits
The city of Ludwigsburg promotes the project as a good example for climate change adaptation that can contribute to some extent to enhance local climate by reducing urban heat island effect. For instance, the vegetation cover has a direct and measurable effect on the immediate environment.
The city plans to continue the maintenance of the Green Living Room after the end of TURAS project.
Key Lesson Learned
Hans Müller, Helix Pflanzen:
"The urban and open space planners from Ludwigsburg's city administration were keen on implementing the pilot and searched for a new location. The park department secured funding for the co-financing, which was necessary for the ground plate and the irrigation system. A "Climate Change Adaptation Strategy" for the whole municipality was planned too."