Zehlendorfer Bogen
Town Hall Extension
Berlin-Zehlendorf
Client
Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung und Wohnen Berlin in coordination with Bezirksamt Steglitz-Zehlendorf von Berlin
Program
Extension of the Zehlendorf Town Hall with continued use of the existing building from the 1920s. Integration of the city library, rooms for the music school, and a cafeteria.
Approximately 40,000 m² above-ground gross floor area (GFA) on a site of about 2.3 hectares.
1st Prize, Urban Planning Expert Assessment Procedure, 2021
Revision of the Urban Planning Concept, 2022–2024
Team
MLA+ / Studio M³
Ola Gordowy, Agnes Helming, Christoph Michael, Maximilian Müller, Marina Rondini, Mateusz Zieliński
Landscape Design
Lohrengel Landschaft
Model Making
mhk21 Modellbau und Konstruktion
Concept
The design of the Zehlendorfer Bogen evolves directly from the site, building on existing qualities and transforming them with care and continuity. The concept treats the historically developed urban island between Teltower Damm, Martin-Buber-Straße, and Kirchstraße as a cohesive whole. It introduces a built structure that honours the site’s heritage, mediates between surrounding scales, and, in the spirit of urban repair, creates strong spatial character and a high degree of identity.
An arc—derived from the historic urban fabric—extends between the Pauluskirche and the passageway to Teltower Damm. The existing town hall is integrated as a central element of the ensemble, complemented by an L‑shaped building that opens inward, strengthening the overall composition. Together, they define the Neue Rathausplatz (New Town Hall Square), the civic heart of the new town hall.
The result is a context-sensitive structure with a human scale and clearly defined spatial hierarchies. At its centre is the Neue Rathausplatz, which activates the interior of the site and defines the access concept: all major public functions (welcome desk, library, café, assembly hall, music school/adult education centre) are accessed from the square, fostering a vibrant and open civic space. Secondary entrances, such as staff access, are placed along the surrounding streetscape.