hochform. Architekten

Donaumarina Tower lies at a neuralgic point of Vienna’s urban expansion at the Danube, where new residential areas and business districts arise. The invited competition consisted of a review process for acquiring a construction concept for a high-rise building with office usage.

The design by Snøhetta in cooperation with hochform. Architekten on one hand considers the context, while on the other hand creating a building with a strong identity and great spatial qualities. The west side of the high-rise building will be slightly contorted in both northern and southern direction, as to optimize daylight and views. Simultaneously, the shading by neighboring buildings, such as Marina Tower, is reduced. Each floor includes an optimized floor-plan, to provide the best use of flexible office areas possible.

Other than achieving the required office space, creating a location which transforms a generic building into a vertical urban district is of top priority. On most floors, the office areas can be divided into two or even four units. This conventional stacking of single office spaces per floor will be broken up by vertical connections in specific areas. A conceptual “cultural axis” runs through from ground floor level up to the communal roof top terrace. Physical, vertical connections link rooms over multiple levels. Together, event spaces, co-working-areas, green terraces, or winter gardens form a chain of communal spaces along the cultural axis.

This cultural axis is particularly pronounced alongside the area of the winter gardens, which project over multiple levels, especially along the east side of the tower. This area has a lucent façade, which attracts attention for the new high-rise building. This “signal” is visible from two directions, from the city in the south, and from the waterfront in the north. The work spaces in the winter garden bring added value. The flexible floor plan attracts innovative business sectors, which need dynamic spatial concepts.

Two levels in OG15 and OG16 form the “plaza” of the tower, a meeting point for exchange and networking. The areas at base area are not only intended for employees, but create an urban “living room”, a public space for the whole district. These common areas anchor the high-rise building to the quarter and add to social sustainability.