media center schladming

urban design concept
schladming, as an attractive location for all kinds of events, lives above all from its setting in the mountains and its unique natural surroundings. its fame as a skiing town — not least due to the annually held, now world-famous night race, the night slalom on the planai — is an additional promotional effect that makes schladming a distinctive brand. the new congress center responds to this special characteristic of the place: the distinctive mountain ranges become a staged backdrop for the congress center. with views of the planai, the hauser kaibling, and the hochwurzen, the congress center orients its entrance front toward the town center and offers, for events that do not require darkening, a panoramic view of the dachstein massif and the grimming from the main hall.

building structure
the main hall is the defining element of the event center. its volume and form are legible both inside and out, emphasized by the shimmering surface. all other functions are arranged in a ring around it and receive a green roof, which additionally accentuates the main hall. this fifth façade is of particular importance in a mountain region. it presents a contemporary image of a crystalline, confident building form — transparent, flexible in use, and meeting all the requirements of a future-oriented center for a wide variety of functions. the shape of the hall, with its sloping walls both horizontally and vertically and its folded roof, primarily follows high acoustic demands. the central hall can be generously opened toward the foyer, the service corridor, the kitchen, and above all outward for open-air events. the concrete structure and shell of the hall ensure high-quality sound insulation even during loud events. the seminar/congress rooms project representatively above the entrance area. the spatial configuration is flexibly designed, usable either as enclosed seminar rooms or entirely open and, in connection with the foyer, as a large space for mega-events. all service rooms and storage areas for both halls are located on one level, ensuring optimal conditions for setup and dismantling — a freight lift is therefore unnecessary. a three-story entrance foyer connects the main event level with the seminar and office areas on the upper floor and the parking deck located in the basement.

access
pedestrians reach the entrance foyer directly via augasse or via the new bridge opposite the leisure complex. bus drop-off is also located on augasse. all arrivals and departures of cars (visitors) and trucks (delivery and pickup) take place on the side facing away from the single-family houses. the consistent separation of the three main access routes — pedestrian/bus drop-off, truck delivery, and car parking — allows for crossing-free circulation without mutual interference. in addition, there is a dedicated emergency access for rescue and fire services.

parking deck
the decision to arrange the majority of the 240 parking spaces required by the client in an open parking deck below the event center proves to be essential in this specific urban situation and offers several advantages:
an outdoor design that meets the quality standards of a congress center. an open parking area of the required size would have an extremely negative impact on the neighboring hotels and single-family homes and would not suit the townscape. the load-bearing soil begins only three meters below ground level; by embedding the parking deck into the terrain, otherwise necessary and costly soil improvement measures are avoided. the partially greened platform created by the parking deck is ideally suited for the required possibility of extending the large hall outdoors. it provides ideal conditions for deliveries to and from the kitchen, the hall, and all storage areas. the parking deck protects all neighbors from visual, acoustic, and emission-related disturbances. in a rural region, many visitors arrive by private car; the parking deck allows for sheltered access and offers an attractive, short approach directly into the three-story foyer of the event center. the parking area does not need to be cleared of snow in winter — a not insignificant advantage in a region that, hopefully, will remain snowy in the future. the parking spaces in the deck can also be used by the neighboring hotels. the relatively low investment costs for the parking deck (with minimal building services expenditure) can be amortized within a foreseeable period through appropriate management.