‘Mab Zeil’ in Frankfurt, Germany designed by Massimiliano Fuksas will open on February 28th. The building which took approximately 5 years to construct is comprised of  a 4 star hotel with conference center, a fitness center, a cinema and office space.

Fluent in form the building is connected by 2 major poles one at the Zeil side and the other at the TT side, where entrances are located for the hotel and offices. The hotel’s lobby is located in the reconstructed TT building, next to an art gallery and the more luxurious shops that form the end of the shopping mall. The lobby is connected with the rooms via elevators. In between there are connections on the 3rd and 4th floor with the conference center and sport facilities. Escalators bring employees up to the fourth floor in a 27.5 meter entrance hall.

The following description is from the architect:

‘How to realize a vast program on a relatively small site in the center of Frankfurt at the Zeil. A program that in itself is quite diverse. Next to an enormous shopping mall the client asks a large surface of office space, a 4 star + hotel with conference center, a fitness center and cinema. Apart from the different character of all parts of the program they also divert in a logistic way, in opening time…

2 levels
For a program like this, that contains a world in itself, one ground level is not enough! In the design we introduce a second public surface on the fourth level. The public shopping program in this concept is positioned in between these 2 levels. On the fourth level we find leisure functions like cinema, sport and restaurants.

From Zeil to Turn und Taxis.
To bring the people into the project the formal has been inspired by a fluent form which connects the Zeil with TT and then, continues into the FRS area. But in this form people are not staying on the ground floor. Entering deeper in the building void systems that descend from the fourth level bring down the light and bring up the people!. Also in a programmatic way the fourth level is a strong reference point. By placing the attractive leisure program parts on this level  it becomes a main level in the project.

Night and Day
The time difference between the parts of the program is also resolved in the fourth level. Directly from the Zeil façade the escalaters lead up to the roof that is open ‘24 hours’ a day, while the shopping mall closes during night time.

Formal/ Informal
The 2 poles of the project, the one of Zeil and TT side, have also a different character. The Zeil strasse is a free time, entertainment, relaxing etc expression. The other side has a more serious face. It is here that the entrances are located for the hotel and the offices. The hotel has the lobby in the chic reconstructed TT building, next to an art gallery and the more luxurous shops that form the end of the shopping mall. The lobby is connected with the rooms via elevators. In between there are connections on the 3rd and 4rth floor with the conference centre and the sport facilities.

The offices have a representative entrance on the nue eisenheimerstrasse. Escalators are bringing the employees up to the fourth floor in a  27.5 m high entrance hall. Also for the offices the fourth level is the distribution level. Here is the connection between the diverse office towers that start from here. The office receptions are in this way also well connected with the public parts on the roof and form, by the vast amount of people working there, a public in itself!

Pflicht and Kuer
2 designs have been made for this site which we call pflicht and kuer. The concept is the same for both designs. The limitations regarding the maximum buildingheight in the pflicht entwurf are more limited. Therefore we were obliged to place more and smaller office towers on the shopping mall base. In the Kuer the office towers get their slender and elegant form. In this version also the reconstruction of TT will be realised which provides a representative entrance for both hotel and cultural functions.
FRS.

The project continues formally in The FRS area. Programmatically however this as a separate area in which office spaces are created around 2 patios. On the ground floor there are shops which guarantee e a more friendly street character. The glass roofing which is extended also on top of this area makes it possible to create attractive outside spaces on some places while on other places can change in a metal grid that forms the shelter for the technical installations on the roof.’

Program: retail, Kidsworld, restaurants, fitness center
Area: 78.000sqm
Beginning:  16/07/2004
Location: Frankfurt, An der Zeil, Germany