Baakenpark - a place of longing in eastern HafenCity Hamburg

The island of longing Baakenpark is the green center of the eastern HafenCity that will be built by 2024. The 1.6-hectare peninsula, artificially raised from Elbe sand, is located in the middle of the former Baakenhafen harbor basin, which is characterized by linear edges, steel bank edgings and stone promenades. With its wild shoreline, green slopes down to the water's edge and characteristic topography, the park forms an atmospheric counter-world to its surroundings. A park that invites you to discover and only opens up when you walk through it.
A park with a variety of offers for all visitors, with lively meeting places, wide sunbathing and play areas, but also with quieter, remote places.

Baakenpark has a striking topography with several plateaus of varying heights. Himmelsberg, a vantage point visible from afar, is the highest elevation at the eastern end of the peninsula. When exploring the park, visitors are offered surprising changes of perspective and varied views. As a green area, the park offers recreation with a variety of sports, play and recreation facilities and is a visual-aesthetic point of reference in the middle of the harbour basin. The bridge from Versmannkai to Baakenpark provides a direct connection for pedestrians and cyclists between the parts of the new city quarter to the north and south of the harbour basin. The peninsula itself is accessed by a circumferential path along the embankment.

Due to the special flood protection requirements, the play and green areas of the park were laid out on three raised plateaus. The three plateaus differ clearly from each other in their uses and atmospheres: in the west of the peninsula lies the sports and play area, the middle level offers a play and sunbathing area with a grandstand lying in the embankment, and in the east, away from the hustle and bustle, rises as the crowning glory of Himmelsberg.

WESTERN PLATEAU
Right at the entrance to the park, the island sofa presents itself as a meeting point - an imposing, wooden seating landscape on which one can sit, but also lie down. Above it towers the flotsam playground. Seemingly at random, wooden crates and beams lie washed up in the sand. Different, accessible themed boxes are discovered by the children as they play. A small playing field made of artificial turf for recreational and school sports completes the offer.

MIDDLE PLATEAU
With its spacious lawn under fruit trees, the middle plateau invites visitors to picnic. Three large sky swings are located in an exposed position, as well as a sheltered area between trees and a slightly recessed area with intergenerational exercise equipment. The northern slope of the plateau is equipped with a generous seating area. Elevated, with a view of the harbour basin and the Versmannkai opposite, an attractive place to stay is created, which is also used as a grandstand for smaller events. A 100m running track is located in the immediate vicinity of the newly planned primary school and kindergarten. The EPDM surface of the running track widens over a flat embankment to a versatile play area including a streetball court.

EASTERN PLATEAU
The Himmelsberg rises in the eastern part. It forms the prominent end of the park, visible from afar, and blends harmoniously into the picturesque landscape of the peninsula. Like a pyramid, the 15-metre-high mountain slopes steeply downwards on three sides, with grass mats and a belt of reeds covering it in a green robe. A staircase cut into the flat slope of the mountain takes the visitor to a viewing platform. It forms the crowning point of the Himmelsberg and rewards with an all-round view over the port of Hamburg away from the hustle and bustle.

First prizeGerman Landscape Architecture Award 2019

Jury verdict: In the course of the urban development of Hamburg's Baakenhafen, an artificial peninsula was conceived, which is assigned to the highly condensed quarter as a public open space. In this initial situation, the landscape architectural design defines a topographical figure that has a great deal of autonomy despite the water-related framework conditions. Through the varied shaping of the shore edge, a lively geometry develops in contrast to the simplicity of the harbour basin.

The internal division into three "plateaus" also follows this rhythmic duct and allows individually shaped spaces to emerge. Consequently, the idea is also transferred into the third dimension, with the "sky mountain" a concise vantage point is created. In addition to the formal approach, the design explains itself in a poetic way from the special place and also establishes references to the surrounding cultural landscape.

The concept of use is remarkable, which despite a very diverse range of play and sports facilities also leaves room for quiet recreation and experiencing the wide perspectives. Thus, impressive spatial sceneries, which are unparalleled, arise from topographical drama and functional compression. This is supported by the careful selection of the woody plants, whose atmospheric composition is inspired by the landscape of the Elbe region.

The authors' great joy in playing and experimenting can also be seen in the design of surfaces and furnishing elements. With great attention to detail, individual objects were designed, some of which radiate a sculptural character. Here, too, the idea of creating a variety of offerings in a limited space and thus meeting the very different requirements of a contemporary open space becomes visible.

Overall, this design is a trend-setting work that faces the current planning challenges very confidently. Despite the very specific location, approaches are shown that have an exemplary general validity and thus provide important impulses for the development of landscape architecture.