kindergarten city park

urban space concept
the city park in vienna's 3rd district is a defined, exclusive green space in the center of the city.
in principle, it is possible to locate a kindergarten in such a park, but this requires careful handling of the district's and city's green reserves. the green ground cover of the park is raised, opened up, and the building is embedded in the terrain. the green, heavily vegetated roof of the kindergarten compensates for the built-up green space. the park is left as a natural space without any significant changes to the planting in the area of the kindergarten. the boundary between the public park and the children's outdoor area should be fluid and barely noticeable, apart from a simple chain-link fence to protect the children.

spatial concept
the entrance area and auditorium are generously sized to accommodate events and informal parent-teacher meetings. the playhouse and studio can be used to expand the auditorium for celebrations. in addition, the auditorium opens onto the garden via the direct access area between the group rooms. all group rooms face south. the terraces in front can be closed during the cold season. as unheated winter gardens, they serve as a climate buffer and provide additional space on warmer days. at the same time, they provide built-in sun protection for the group rooms when the summer sun is high. the group rooms can be used in different spatial configurations. they can be used as private individual cells, coupled with the areas in between, or as a completely open continuum. the intermediate areas of the group rooms on the upper floor can be allocated to one group or the other, or used as an interaction space between the groups. the relationships between the groups are also facilitated by the terraces in front of the building. the playhouse and studio are two-story buildings with play and craft galleries on the upper floor. the children's house can be accessed directly from the entrance area to enable the required external use. the children's house toilet is also used as a toilet for the outdoor area. the staff cloakrooms in the basement can be reached via a short route. a central cleaning room is also located in the basement. the location of the elevator makes it equally accessible to all floors.

outdoor
each group has a terrace in front of the group room. this is a protected, controlled outdoor area, or an additional indoor space that can be used as a winter garden. the garden is directly accessible to all group rooms via the cloakrooms. areas of the roof offer a teaching excursion into the treetops and the orchard. a lift also takes disabled children up to eye level with the bird nests.

green space design

natural space: city park
the characteristic green space of the city park flows seamlessly into the almost imperceptibly fenced-off area of the kindergarten without any significant changes to the planting. the kindergarten building is implanted into the green space, lifting the earthen ceiling above the back of the building. the green space remains part of the urban natural space. at eye level with the treetops the children can observe and explore areas of the trees that they would otherwise not notice. native birds can be observed, and water troughs on the roof invite them to come closer.

rediscovering the forgotten
on the roof lawn, which is also accessible to children in wheelchairs via the elevator, city children experience meadow flowers and grasses that have been pushed back in urban areas.
like a feeding meadow, it is rarely mowed.
chicory, thistles, viper's bugloss, bellflowers, daisies, forget-me-nots, deadnettles, lilies,
marigolds, poppies, buttercups, red clover, horn clover and thistles, hawkweed, evening primrose,
cornflowers, dandelions, columbines, thyme, sticky catchflies, horse chestnut...

one fruit tree for each group
old native fruit trees, whose fruits are hardly known, grow in plant troughs (located above the low sanitary facilities). each group has “its” tree: cherry, blue mulberry, vineyard peach, quince, house plum, clear apples, cox's orange pippin, greengages.

entrance without a garden gate
the front area of the kindergarten leads to the entrance of the building without a front garden barrier.
the access leads from the public forecourt through the tree filter to the intermediate area between the city and private property.

a wall facing the street
the elevated traffic and city noise are “blocked out” by a wall covered with grapevines on the inside.

red tree - red swing chair
each group has its “own” tree in the park. the group area is defined by this tree and colorful, gently rocking loungers. red lounger, yellow lounger, green, purple, blue, orange, white lounger. a minimal landscape intervention is assigned: seating hollow, meadow hump,
camel hump, lawn snake, matterhorn...

terraces in front of the group rooms
each group room has a terrace area to the south. not only in the warm season, but also as a winter garden in the transitional seasons and on sunny winter days, it can be used as an additional space.

fire pit water fountain
the shared playground is centrally located and can be accessed directly – via the cloakrooms – from both the ground floor and the group rooms on the upper floor. small retreats can be claimed by girls and boys.

energy concept
the following basic approaches to the building's shape and orientation create favorable conditions for energy efficiency and energy savings:
compact building design with green roof,
integration of the building into the terrain,
minimization of window areas facing north,
maximization of window areas facing south,
winter garden facing south in front of the group rooms,
passive use of solar energy,
primary energy district heating