Water Landscape: Hamburg is not near the Sea

Hamburg is not near the sea, and yet, in the public consciousness it somehow is. The River Elbe connects this Hanseatic City and its centrally located international port to the world’s oceans. The river has always been used as a representative and functional area, as has its tributary, the Alster. The current development strategy Metropolis Hamburg – A Growing City further emphasises the presence of water in the city. With internationally renowned projects such as HafenCity, and through the promotion of cultural activities in the Speicherstadt, with its many canals, as well as the International Building Exhibition (IBA) and the international garden show (igs 2013) the Elbe and its waterfront areas will be increasingly linked to residential and commercial centres. Not only will important users such as the University of the Built Environment and Metropolitan Development (HCU) with its many spectacular buildings be integrated in the HafenCity, but open space areas in the harbour will also be expanded upon and improved. The waterfront will become an even more important calling card for the city.          

As part of a large international workshop in 2003 a team consisting of, among others, ASTROC, Louafi, Düsterhöft, and Dr. Oldengott developed a design approach for Wilhelmsburg Island entitled The Existing Condition is the Concept, which aimed to create a high-quality patchwork using a comprehensive open space concept that would also highlight the River Elbe and its adjacent areas. This workshop, which was organised to look at commercially used areas on the islands in the Elbe between the HafenCity and Hamburg’s inland port, served as the starting point for the subsequent planning and development of the city’s southern districts, which included integrated concepts for the landscape that later served as a motor for the igs and the IBA. The Leap across the Elbe is one of the main themes of the overall development strategy, the objectives of which are to enhance growth and the quality of life, and to create an urban and environmentally sound city that integrates and takes advantage of its surrounding landscape. As a result, the city of Hamburg and its contiguous region will have an increased presence as a water landscape.