1st Prize
Selective interdisciplinary study, Basel, 2024
Open space regulations / Accompanying mandate for open space / Activating measures, 2024-2034
ARGE ROM: Studio Céline Baumann + Weyell Zipse, with Martin Frei (Ecology) + Knopp+Kniel (Cultural management)
Rosental Mitte is an off-limits 9 ha site located centrally in Basel, between the Messeplatz trade fair square and the German station of Badischer Bahnhof. This industrial site was originally developed by the Geigy firm. It is there that the infamous insecticide DDT was invented in 1939, whose wide use led to the publication of the book “Silent Spring” by Rachel Carson, which revealed the devastating damage of the chemical on the environment. The canton of Basel-Stadt acquired in 2019 the site with the aim to open it up and make it part of the urban fabric. It subsequently launched a competition to define the qualities of the newly reclaimed open spaces and provide a set of activating measures to guide the progressive opening of the site during the next decade.
Our winning scheme “Singing Spring” is based on the creation of a network of promenades serving as a backbone for the constitution of three new open spaces: a neighbourhood park: the Riehenteichanlage, a central square: the Rosentalplatz, and an entrance plaza located in front of the German station of the Badischer Bahnhof: the Schwarzwaldplatz. The project aims at providing an added environmental value through the development of an overall ecological network.
Particular attention is paid to the interface between open space and buildings threshold. Ground floor plinths are conceived with high porosity in mind, a fixed proportion of openings and vertical vegetation are defined in order create a clear address and also to permit a high level of permeability.
A set of activating measures includes the use of humans and vegetative pioneers. Breaking the existing asphalt allows for the planting of pioneer trees and the rise of a spontaneous vegetation. Precise interventions and temporary uses are furthermore guiding the site’s transformation process. A footbridge across the fenced-off area of the plot makes the Sandgrubenstrasse accessible to pedestrians and asserts the importance of this axis. Vacant buildings are being surveyed and according to their potential repurposed for temporary uses, offering over the decades of the project’s timeline an ongoing transformation process.
