The 200 colour shades of Stadt-Galerie Passau
Passau‘s architecture is characterised by its fragmented old town. In order to accommodate this aspect, the facade of the Stadt-Galerie shopping center has been divided into sections imitating the structure of the old town.
This way the building links the old town surrounding Ludwigsplatz in an unobtrusive but at the same time self-confident manner with the new town centre. By offsetting the eaves lines and shear walls against each other, an enclosed street layout with a compact sequence of small subdivided houses has been created in the same way as in the old town. These typical Passau elements have been incorporated by means of contemporary interpretation.
The same also applies to the incorporation of the building colours of the old town and the materials deployed in the facade with steel and glass.
The facade is composed of differently coloured sections with ten base colours. The subtly distinguished colour picture of an individual section of the facade is made up of 20 different types of metal panel with varying hole sizes and colour shades from bright to dark in the colour range of the applicable base colour. This accordingly results in 200 different shades of colour across the entire facade of the Stadt-Galerie shopping center, with each shade allocated to a specific hole size and increasing from bright to dark.
The double-partition wall construction provides an illumination that is varyingly dispersed by the differently perforated metal facade elements and lends the building a theatrical air. This enables fields of light to appear at dusk in accordance with a specific trait that deliver a unique interpretation of the traditional Passau facade.
The entrances to the Stadt-Galerie shopping center on Bahnhofstrasse and Ludwigplatz are highlighted by means of illuminated shop windows. The entrance at the central bus station is phased into the building in line with the pattern of the steps and is accentuated by means of coved lighting.
A further special feature is the ‘fifth’ view - the roofing. This takes up the fragmented structure of the facade and continues it in the form of flying roofs to provide the higher surrounding developments with a varied view of the parking area.
The integration of the historic building “Bahnhofstrasse 1“ ultimately shows how well old and new can be combined to form a single unit. The listed building has been restored to its old charm and now houses the shopping center management.
New facade
With its differentiated facade and the varying heights of its eaves, the new construction harmonises with the city’s architecture and makes a bold and self-confident addition to the old city’s characteristic structure of small buildings.
Old facade
The listed building at Bahnhofstrasse 1 was carefully integrated into the new Stadt-Galerie and now houses the offices of the center management.
Facts about Stadt-Galerie Passau
| PURCHASE BY DEUTSCHE EUROSHOP// | DECEMBER 2006 |
| LAYING THE FOUNDATION STONE // | 20 APRIL 2007 |
| TOPPING OUT // | 11 OCTOBER 2007 |
| GRAND OPENING // | 10. SEPTEMBER 2008 |
| LEASABLE SPACE // | approx. 27,400 m2 |
| OF WHICH RETAIL SPACE // | approx. 21,000 m2 |
The Stadt-Galerie is the shopping attraction in the centrally located and newly developed Neue Mitte district of Passau. On three elegant sales levels, around 90 specialty shops, service providers, cafes and restaurants present a retail mix tailored to Passau and southeast Bavaria.
Around 700 jobs have been created since the Stadt-Galerie opened. An average of 26,000 people visit the shopping center every day.