Another building from the 1950s is disappearing from the cityscape: the owner Signa Real Estate has started to demolish the former department store at the Hauptwache.
In the past few weeks, the building right next to St. Catherine's Church had been gutted and scaffolded.
On Monday, the canopy of the department store had already been removed, and workers were busy dismantling the facade cladding on the top floor.
An excavator was waiting on the roof to start demolition work.
As early as September, there should be nothing left of the building, which for many years housed the sports arena and most recently a fashion outlet and a corona test center.
Gunter Murr
Editor in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.
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Signa will build a mixed office and commercial building in its place by the end of 2024.
Of the total rental area of 10,000 square meters on six floors, 7200 square meters are offices, 2300 are retail and gastronomy and 500 square meters are a roof garden.
Signa Managing Director Tobias Sauerbier sees growing demand for office space in a central location.
In addition, the topic of sustainability is playing an increasingly important role for tenants.
You react to this with the highest ecological standards.
The new building with a curved facade, which is slightly higher than the existing building, was designed by the Cologne architect Caspar Schmitz-Morkramer.
The previous building, now demolished, was completed in 1956.
In 1999, when the department store was converted into the Kaufhof-Sportpalast, it underwent major visual changes.
The previous building was Haus Belli, built in the mid-18th century and destroyed in World War II.