New triple sports hall at the Cantonal School Wettingen by :mlzd

Description of project by :mlzd

The place

The Cistercian monastery Wettingen is a special place. Starting with the unique location on the monastery peninsula and its long history, its importance was expressed by the elevation to the status of Heritage Site of National Significance. 

With the establishment of the Cantonal School in 1979 on the premises of the monastery, uses and education were added to education appropriate to the place of religious deepening and knowledge. On the Allmend, outside the monastery wall, the sports courts and swimming pool of the school were built. These were created as symmetrical systems around a Tiefhof, over whose long sides the attached sports halls were supplied with daylight. An underground structure was created, because the historical view of the monastery from the north side was clearly significant. The situation on the peninsula means that users and visitors have been approaching the monastery complex and its utility buildings for almost 800 years. The undeveloped, flat former Allmend is visually important, because it allows the entire system to be seen at a glance. But it is also a transition gap, a kind of safety distance between the Schönschweiz (beautiful Switzerland) of the monastery and the Gebrauchsschweiz (useful Switzerland) with the railway line and the highway. The approach to the monastery through this space is therefore a temporal and spiritual process, a moment of pause which is inextricably linked with the superficially undeveloped Allmend. 

The conception and the organization 

The new construction of the triple sport hall is also subordinated to this model and is largely organized underground. Orientation and the relevance to daylight play a decisive role in an underground construction, especially since many people will be in it. The task therefore correctly called for "the structural complement" and the "traffic flows" should be unbundled. 

The starting point of the project is therefore a linear promenade as a cut area, which connects the old and the new building from south to north in a clear and orderly manner. All main uses are directly accessible via this access route, generously visible from there. 

From the existing entrance pavilion on the south-facing Kanzlerreinstrasse, a passage leads across the Tiefhof to the opposite outer tribune. There is the entrance of the new triple sports hall. The path of the passage continues as an external access road to the northern Schwimbadstrasse. 

From the passage you can watch the happenings on the beach volleyball courts, in the extension you will find the entrance foyer and the staff room on the left, while on the right side you will get a generous view of the new triple sport hall. 

Imposing concrete beams span the pillar-free hall space and make a decisive contribution to the fact that you feel that you are up there, even though you are in the outer space, completely "in" the hall and connected to what is happening. Due to the orientation of the hall, the southern light penetrates into the area of ​​the entrance and the teacher's room. The sports hall and the audience gallery, however, are illuminated by the glare-free northern light. By merging the lighting zone and the spectator gallery, there are no disturbing backlighting effects when looking at the playing field.

A generous staircase in the entrance foyer leads to a lounge area in front of the building, where the spectator level and the dressing rooms are staggered below the access path. 

On the side facing away from the hall, the dressing rooms have an emergency corridor which can be used as a clean corridor (separating sports and street footwear) and as a sports corridor (separating athletes and spectators). The pupils have direct access to the sports halls one floor below via this access corridor. 

In addition to the allocated equipment rooms, the hall area itself is located on the lowest floor. Its dimensions and height comply with the BASPO guidelines and can be divided into three individual halls. In addition, the toilet facilities on the lowest floor are compactly organised for the entire triple sports hall. 

The outside perception 

As a result of the chosen organisation by linear elements, a calm and clear picture of the entire facility is created on the outside. The existing buildings are changed only insignificantly. In the extension of the western Tiefhof façade and along the promenade, the incision in the terrain stretches to the north and on the one hand provides an insight into the action in the sports hall and on the other hand creates a connection between the triple hall and the outdoor playing fields. 

The arrangement of the sports fields remains the same as before and will only be adapted to the new field sizes. 

Materialisation 

The materialisation of the main rooms is proposed in a calm and purposeful manner; strong colour accents are reserved for the players on the pitch for an experience as rich in contrast as possible. The ubiquitous concrete remains largely visible. Only the closed areas of the athletes and the acoustically effective surfaces, such as the impact wall and the sports hall ceiling, are clad. The sports floor as well as the walls in the lowest part of the hall are kept in a light colour tone and visually form a 'tub' with the horizon at the lower spectator gallery eye level. Sports and spectator areas are thus on the one hand optically clearly separated from each other, on the other hand the actual events are cleverly highlighted and staged - without the contrast to the concrete becoming too strong. 

In the adjoining rooms, especially in the showers and dressing rooms, the colour palette becomes stronger and also serves as an orientation aid and signal at the interface to the neutral hall. 

The materials used comply with the guidelines of the ECO-BKP leaflets. 

Sustainability

As far as possible for an underground building, the new hall uses materials with a long service life and ecologically harmless contents. 

More important, however, are the overriding concepts aimed at ensuring a high building standard without complicated technology. 

For example, due to the orientation and dimensioning of the cut in the terrain, an elaborate glare protection can be omitted. 

The primary and secondary structures are clearly separated from each other. By bundling the highly installed parts of the building, the pipe routes can be kept extremely short and simple.