The Dorothee-Sölle-House combines a listed brick building with an existing office building to form a mixed-use residential ensemble in Hamburg-Altona. The conversion responds to the growing demand for inner-city housing by consistently reusing the existing building fabric. Formerly unused office space is transformed into student housing with complementary programs for the neighborhood.
The redesign follows the principle of resource-efficient intervention. The existing structure is largely preserved to retain the embodied grey energy, while targeted adaptations create contemporary living and usage qualities without extensive demolition. The active ground floor opens up to the neighborhood: a café, shared event spaces, and a public fitness studio animate the building and establish it as a social hub.
In the historic brick building on Schillerstraße, a hybrid of living and coworking spaces with 22 workstations is created. High ceilings, exposed columns, and a generous stairwell define the spatial atmosphere. The former office building on Königstraße is converted into a student residence. Maximum spatial efficiency with minimal intervention into the existing structure shapes the concept. Each floor combines shared apartments and studio units. Shared apartments with five to nine single rooms offer generous communal areas with kitchens, while studio apartments provide autonomy with private bathrooms and kitchenettes. Additional communal spaces on the ground floor create areas for social interaction and leisure. On the fourth floor, a wraparound balcony facing the inner courtyard offers outdoor space. In total, 222 student places are created in close proximity to Altona station. A planted buffer zone along the street provides distance and privacy for the ground-floor apartments.
The Dorothee-Sölle-House demonstrates how adaptive reuse, social diversity, and ecological responsibility can merge into a contemporary urban housing project—resource-conscious, community-oriented, and closely connected to its neighborhood.