New life for old houses
Press conference on 1 November, 11 a.m., Blankenauer Straße 2 - on the occasion of the "International Day of Cities"
On Wednesday, 1 November at 11 a.m., representatives of the media are invited to a press conference at Blankenauer Straße 2 to mark "International Cities Day". The success story of the apartment block in Schloßchemnitz will be presented as part of the "New life for old houses" campaign launched by the city of Chemnitz in 2020.
The case of Blankenauer Straße 2 shows that - despite bomb damage, dry rot and negligent owners - it can be worthwhile for a city to pursue a patient policy of small steps over the years in order to save valuable building fabric.
Grit Stillger, Department of Urban Renewal in the City of Chemnitz's Urban Planning Office, Cathrin Fuchs, Department of Monument Protection in the City of Chemnitz's Building Permit Office, Martin Neubert and Sabine Hausmann from the StadtWohnen Chemnitz agency and property developer Michael Golz, whose company carried out the refurbishment and who will facilitate a tour, will be available for the press conference.
Built in 1890, the apartment block with its front garden has significant heritage value due to its high design quality. A brick repair of bomb damage from the Second World War on the right-hand side of the façade also bears witness to Chemnitz's history. The preservation of the house in a closed row was therefore of great interest to the city of Chemnitz.
The StadtWohnen Chemnitz agency, commissioned by the city planning office of the city of Chemnitz, began working intensively on the house in June 2013. Contacting the owner at the time proved to be very difficult and the building had to be secured by the City of Chemnitz. The StadtWohnen agency organised viewings with a large number of interested parties once it was clear that a change of ownership would take place. Several attempts at forced sales had to be made.
In September 2017, the house was finally purchased at auction by a new owner, who sold it on to Golz Wohnbau GmbH in December 2018. The Leipzig-based company, which specialises in the high-quality renovation of listed buildings, quickly began surveying and planning the floor plan and held intensive coordination meetings with the monument protection authority.
The refurbishment was essentially completed in July 2023. The final work steps in the historically designed entrance area were still outstanding, but almost all of the flats were already occupied.
The good cooperation between various city offices, the municipal agency StadtWohnen Chemnitz and a capable investor who does not shy away from difficult cases were the decisive factors in bringing a long odyssey to a successful conclusion.