Share this on

Low Budget, High Hopes

Gisela Williams -- Interior Design, 7/1/2009 12:00:00 AM

Searching for the right architect to design a ground-up community center, the southern German city of Mannheim hoped to accomplish three things. The facility had to serve several functions—with an indoor-outdoor gymnasium, plus an events space. The architecture had to introduce a contemporary outlook to the underprivileged neighborhood of Jungbusch. And the project had to adhere to a tight budget, the equivalent of $4 million. It was Scholl.Balbach.Walker Architekten that fulfilled all three criteria and won the competition to build the Turnhalle Plus X. According to partner Michael Walker, the firm's solution stood out for its flexibility and, most important, the uniqueness of the basketball court on the roof.

From a distance, the galvanized-steel structure that frames the basketball court looks like the legs of an enormous spider or, as Walker describes it, the top of a crown. These tubes also serve a practical purpose: They support a net of galvanized-steel wire that ensures the ball doesn't escape to the streets below. "We kept in mind that the center was going to be used by active young adults, so we chose colors that are timeless and robust," Walker adds, noting the black, white, and gray outside and the red linoleum flooring inside. Slam dunk.