Büchel old town quarter

Before a redevelopment area is designated, preparatory investigations (VU) must be initiated in accordance with Section 141 of the German Building Code (BauGB) in order to check the feasibility and thus the application of redevelopment law. The implementation of these investigations is based on the assumption that there are urban development deficiencies in an area (suspected deficiency areas). As part of the preparatory investigations, the respective deficiencies are assessed, the willingness of local (private) stakeholders to cooperate is discussed and development prospects and objectives for the area under consideration are drawn up and weighed up against each other.
Once the analysis of the area under investigation has been completed, (individual) measures are drawn up, prioritized and coordinated against the background of preliminary redevelopment and development objectives. To this end, various areas of urban development, including urban development and building refurbishment, services of general interest, mobility and climate, are taken into account and the corresponding measures are then finally summarized in an action plan.

Preparatory studies are always open-ended. Insofar as a redevelopment area can be derived at the end of the VU, the proposed measures must be specified and implemented within a limited implementation period.

Comprehensive or simplified redevelopment measures can be used to implement an urban redevelopment measure. The comprehensive redevelopment procedure is the standard procedure under the Federal Building Code for remedying urban development deficiencies. In this case, special redevelopment regulations according to §§ 152 to 156a apply. In the simplified procedure, without approval requirements in accordance with Section 144 BauGB, urban development subsidies from federal and state funds are generally used.

The aim is to eliminate the functional and material deficiencies in order to ensure the long-term functionality of the study area as an attractive old town and inner city district in the city as a whole and beyond. The residential, working, social and living conditions in the study area are to be improved overall and adapted to modern technical development and equipment standards. This is to be achieved in detail by

• Consideration of the interests of general climate protection and adaptation to the consequences of climate change

• Upgrading public spaces, creating and qualifying open spaces, improving the cityscape

• Strengthening of retail, gastronomy and services, cultural and community-oriented uses

• Safeguarding the residential function
• Securing prostitution with spatial concentration
• Overcoming the conflict between the use of prostitution and surrounding uses (especially housing)

• Densification and adjustment of building heights, improvement of the development of poorly developed properties

In addition to these general objectives, objectives are also planned for the individual sub-areas of Großkölnstraße, Kleinkölnstraße, Mefferdatisstraße, Nikolausstraße, Büchel / former parking garage properties and Antoniusstraße. A more specific explanation of the preliminary redevelopment objectives can be found in the submission for the initiation decision dated 20.06.2024.

Neighborhood architects

On behalf of the municipal development company Aachen (SEGA), smaa Studio was commissioned as neighborhood architects to advise interested property owners and developers on the following topics:

• Funding (grants, fixed amounts, promotional loans)
• Design (form, materiality, color)
• Building regulations (fire protection, accessibility, etc.)
• Building planning law (property encumbrances, etc.)
• New construction, conversion, refurbishment (addition of storeys, extension, closing gaps between buildings, etc.)
• Utilization concepts, brainstorming (support in the search for users)

The district architects can be contacted here: buechel@smaa.studio
If you are planning to renovate your property, please take advantage of this offer.

Modernization agreements

The Büchel old town district is part of the simplified "inner city" redevelopment area. Owners here have the opportunity to conclude modernization agreements with the city in order to claim tax relief for renovations, modernizations or repairs to their property.

There are some requirements for this, which you can find out about here:To the modernization certificates

Urban land-use planning is a key instrument for managing the urban development of neighborhoods. As part of general urban development law, urban land-use planning has the task of preparing and guiding the structural and other use of land on the basis of the German Building Code.

Development plan 999 is currently being prepared for the Büchel old town district in order to create a legal basis for the urban development of the district.

The old town district of Büchel is to become a lively and future-oriented place in the center of Aachen. The focus is on an open space that is to be developed in its target variant as an "open meadow" between Büchel and Antoniusstraße. The open space planning was approved by politicians in summer 2024.

Part of the urban development at Büchel is also the structural development, which is to be carried out as part of a conceptual process together with committed urban planners. Part of this building development is, on the one hand, the "Building Block Knowledge" with which a "Center for Energy and Climate Technology in Aachen" is to be created by Frauenhofer IEG, which will offer space for research, exhibitions and social discourse. On the other hand, the development of the "RedHouse+" and "Outlook" construction areas, which will also create new living space, among other things.

About the planning process