The Dresden Central Station Square and Prager Strasse : an urban design proposal for the renewal and revitalization of this downtown distrct [sic]
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Abstract
This thesis for the Master of Architecture degree focuses on urban renewal, in particular on revitalization of run down inner city neighborhoods. My chosen site is the area outside the main station in Dresden currently a wide open field with a monument of Lenin. It forms an important entry to the city center, to which it connects via the Prager StraBe, once a proud and glamorous shopping street, now a uninviting, wind-swepted pedestrian zone. This area was heavily destroyed (95°x) through Allied bombing on February 13, 1945. The reconstruction after the war disregarded the context more or less completely and was executed in a modernist town planning style which disregards of the history of the place and human scale.The analytical part deals with the existing structures, spaces and services. A catalogue of problems was established in order to be able to discuss objectives and propose strategies for possible solutions. As a result, I developed the program for the scheme.The creative project attempts to solve these problems: the urban form, the reduced density, the traffic situation, the pedestrian zone etc. and demonstrate a reasonable design solution for the area. It consists of a hotel, a convention center, a administration center, various mixed use buildings with retail at ground floor, office units above and residential penthouses. The design for the hard landscaping of the square and the soft landscaping for the public gardens helps to define the public realm. An anticipated future metro station is linked to a underground shopping arcade and to the new station concourse.