Tour: Europaviertel, Lyoner Quartier u.m.

(Cover photo by Prof.hc Dr.-Ing.Philipp Meuser - we thank you for making it available)

3 S-Bahn stations, 3 urban development areas

A tour for Frankfurt residents and visitors who are interested in large new development areas in Frankfurt close to the city center.
Photo: (c) Philipp Meuser

European quarter - A conversion area close to the city center, where a new mixed urban area with a trade fair extension, many apartments and a new park was created on the site of the former freight and marshalling yard

Lyon quarter - also operated by the owners and users of the office buildings, the Niederrad office town, which was built in the sixties, is being converted into a mixed district.

Gateway Gardens - Under the approach lane of the new northwest runway at Frankfurt Airport, a new office and hotel district is being built between old oak trees in place of the former housing area of the American Air Force.

All areas are within four stops of the S 8 and S 9 S-Bahn lines.

The combination tour takes around 5 hours, of course with the option of breaks in between. We are happy to show all areas individually.

The Europaviertel

The first Frankfurt airport, the freight yard, the large marshalling yard were traffic systems that were important for Frankfurt's connection with Germany and the world. A wide street has now been created here, which is intended to ensure that Frankfurt is on par in the world of wide streets. The 2.4 km long Europaallee, the main access roads of the district that began with big buzzwords - a street of European dimensions, built by European architects, doing justice to the Frankfurt financial center - has now become the background for interviews in which politicians explain the inadequate architectural and Criticize the design requirements in the area.

The name is 'Europaviertel': One million square meters of city, a quarter of which is park, around 5000 apartments and ultimately 30,000 jobs have been created near Frankfurt city center and the exhibition center since 2005. The Skyline Plaza shopping center opened in autumn 2013. It is located at the junction with the existing city and is intended to attract the population with its public roof garden, in new German 'Skyline Plaza', so that they can enjoy the view of the Europaviertel. It is surrounded by a series of high-rise buildings, the Tower One office and hotel tower and the Grand Tower at 173 m, the tallest residential tower in Germany. Projects are being developed and planned that will catch up to Mainzer Landstrasse and the apron of the main train station, the Spin office and hotel tower, the green Eden high-rise and the Icoon residential tower by Mecanoo Architects from the Netherlands.

The Lyon quarter

Separation of functions was in vogue when the Niederrad office district was founded in Frankfurt in the 1960s to provide 144 hectares of office space and thus also to reduce the pressure for change on the inner city. As architectural highlights, the German Nestlé headquarters and the Olivetti office towers by Egon Eiermann, which are known beyond the city, were built in 1970. Due to their distinctive goblet shape, they always stand out from the nearby A5.

Times had changed, in 2006 there were 30 % offices vacant, morning and evening commuter traffic jams and the lack of ambience made the area unpopular. Last but not least, the desire of the property owners in Niederrad has triggered a change. The aim is to create a district that is lively seven days a week, with more restaurants, housing offers for office workers close to the workplace and an improved quality of open space. A 'New Niederrad location initiative' - SINN - is trying to make changes. The name was already successful: the Niederrad office district became the Lyon quarter. Based on a master plan development study by bb22 architects and town planners, the desired changes are now visible. A lighthouse project was the conversion of an office tower into apartments by the architect Stefan Forster.

Gateway Gardens

In the immediate vicinity of the airport, on the site of the former housing area of the American Air Force Base in Frankfurt, a service area is now being developed. When the end of American use was in sight, the city wanted to ensure development with positive effects. The 35 hectare site is now being developed by a project development company in which the city has a stake of 50 %s. The area is given a special character by dispensing with fences and the old oak trees. The new development, around 50 %s completed, consists mainly of office buildings and hotels. A special facility is the HOLM - House of Logistics and Mobility. On this topic, institutes of the surrounding universities and private companies work and research under one roof. The building is built according to the passive house standard. Overall, the aim is to achieve DGNB Platinum certification for the area. For this purpose, there is, for example, the requirement 60 % to green the roof areas. Even more important: all buildings are heated with district heating. Since December 2019, an underground S-Bahn station has provided excellent connections to local public transport for the area in the middle of traffic routes: via rail tunnels, between the A3, major access roads to the airport and under the approach path of the new runway.

project selection

European quarter

Master plan from AS&P
Skyline Plaza (Henning Jost + Gisela Simon -Facade Jourdan & Müller)
Tower One (Meurer Architects)
Grand Tower (Magnus Kaminiarz & Cie)
Spintower (Hadi Teherani)
Eden (Magnus Kaminiarz and Helmut Jahn)
office building 'Die Leichtigkeit des Steins' (the lightness of stone) - Banque Parisbas (schneider + schumacher)
Praedium (Dietz Joppien Architects)
Headquarters of the FAZ (Eike Becker Architects)
Westendtower (Meyer Schmitz-Morkramer)
Axis (Meixner Schlueter Wendt)
Pauline in the Europa Garden (Franconian Architects)

The Lyon quarter

Nestlé Germany Headquarters (Meid + Romeick)
Olivetti Towers (Egon Eiermann)
Atricom (Kraemer, Sieverts and Partner)
Prisma (Auer + Weber)
Apartment building Lyoner Straße 19 - conversion of an office building (Stefan Forster)

Gateway Gardens