Weyermannshaus | Bern
Renovation, Weyermannshaus sports and leisure centre | BernInvitation project competition for GP teams, 2nd Prize | 2019
Architecture: Daniele Marques & Rainer Schlumpf
Collaborator: Clara Maria Puglisi, Dipl. Ing. Univ. Arch.
The design formulates a voluminous topographic structure that massively expands the green area of today’s open-air swimming pool. The new facility acts as a green bridge connecting the Bremgartenwald and the Könizbergwald, thereby making the development perimeters of Bern and Bümpliz more discernable again. The identity of the Weyermannshaus facility is strengthened as a green oasis and the address is consolidated through paths and a sunken section of the open park landscape towards the entrances. Generous grassy areas on the roofs fulfil the demand for more reclining areas. The seam-like vegetation along the edges of the facility is added to throughout the new expanded area, thereby strengthening the character of an oasis with new plants.
The rooms for the ice rink and the indoor swimming pool are accommodated in a compact three-storey main building. The main entrance is situated directly on Level 01, on the same elevation as Alte Murtenstrasse, from where it is accessible. The side entrance for deliveries, athletes and match spectators is situated on Level 00 along Stöckackerstrasse, where the ice rink and indoor swimming pool facility are also accommodated. The organisation of the corridors separates the routes of the general public, athletes and operative personnel.
In terms of its form and construction, the main building’s architecture refers to the newly designed landscape area. The materialisation of the primary construction and the façades is logically made of the renewable resource of wood. Foundations and the rising base walls are made of concrete. The roof construction consists of prefabricated, insulated wooden ceiling panels and is fully planted. The sustainable qualities of our project include a PV system facing the sun on the southwestern façade, waste heat utilisation and minimally developed land areas for the benefit of outdoor spaces with great biodiversity.