Sports hall at the Nordstadt School
A new three-court sports hall has been built next to the Nordstadt School in Pforzheim. Located in a previously neglected part of the site, it complements the three-winged school building that characterises the cityscape and frames it towards the north. Integrated into the topography that rises to the north, the new sports hall, in combination with the all-weather playground, the open play areas of the day care centre and the schoolyard, creates a precise end to the perimeter block development.
Significant openings are cut into the monolithic structure with clinker brick façades. These characterise the main entrance to the south and the side entrances to the west and north. The generous window areas on the east and west sides ensure good natural lighting of the interior spaces. Optimum daylight penetration into the hall is also achieved via skylights, which guarantee a uniform incidence of light thanks to their scattered arrangement. With extensive greenery, the roof, which is visible from the school and the surrounding buildings, fulfils its function as a fifth façade. The building is designed to passive house standard.
The entrance foyer is located on the ground floor facing south. The hall space is located on the level above, which can be divided into three sports fields using partition curtains. These are each assigned equipment rooms on the western long side of the hall. The interior walls of the hall are clad all around the playing fields with baffle walls made of wooden elements. The hall floor is covered with coloured sports flooring. A gallery extends along the entire length of the building on the top level, providing space for the public.
A special feature of the new sports hall is its accessibility throughout. A lift ensures that every part of the hall is also accessible by wheelchair. Attention was also paid to the spacious design of the changing rooms and showers. The sports hall will mainly be used for school sports at Nordstadtschule and the Para-Sport-Club Pforzheim.
