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The European Central Bank (ECB) will be constructing its new headquarters up until 2014 on the site of the Grossmarkthalle (former wholesale market hall) in Frankfurt. The building is based on the plans designed by the Viennese architecture office COOP HIMMELB(L)AU), which won the architectural design competition in 2004.
The ECB’s new premises comprise three main elements: the Großmarkthalle itself complete with new internal structures; a high-rise building consisting of two office towers joined by an atrium; and the entrance building), which visually links the Grossmarkthalle to the high-rise towers and provides a clearly identifiable main entrance from the north.
The office tower ensemble is the outcome of an urban design process which took the relation to “Frankfurt City” as its starting point. Adjusted to the main cityscape, the two office towers joined by the atrium appear to be in dialogue with Frankfurt’s major urban reference points (Alte Oper, Museumsufer, Banking District).
