All in one

The Stutensee swim­ming pool is a communal swim­ming pool. That means that it accom­mo­dates diffe­rent groups of visi­tors with diffe­rent needs and requi­re­ments: schools, clubs, fami­lies and amateur swim­mers of all ages.

In addi­tion, only a limited budget and small plot of land are available. Under these circum­s­tances, reali­zing a compel­ling design and an econo­mical solu­tion, with a wide range of services, is not so simple. 4a Archi­tekten have sustain­ably managed to achieve this.

Orga­niza­tion

Archi­tec­tu­rally, the Stutensee swim­ming pool is divided into two connected buil­dings, which are clearly visible from the outside. One houses the bathing hall, the other the entrance and chan­ging area.

The two buil­dings are appro­xi­m­ately the same size and interlock in terms of form and mate­ria­lity. Both offer plenty of daylight through large openings, but also closed elements where neces­sary. The bathing hall offers a noti­ce­ably greater room height – which is also good for the atmo­sphere as well as for orien­ta­tion purposes.

Thanks to the unob­tru­sive furnis­hing and the factual and elegant choice of colors and surfaces, the Stutensee swim­ming pool looks light, airy and spacious from any angle.

Cons­truc­tion

The clear orga­niza­tion of the swim­ming hall and chan­ging area enables a compact and econo­mical design with a favorable ratio between surface area and buil­ding volume. This not only reduces cons­truc­tion costs, but also opera­ting costs.

To the west, north and east, room-high glass facades parti­ally offer views into the surroun­dings (and let in a lot of daylight). The over­hangs of the floor slab and the roof area in the west faci­li­tates the gene­rous entrance zone with an open stair­case. they provide the tran­si­tion to the open-air area with a sunbathing lawn in the east.

In order to reduce the propor­tion of glass facades, the upper facade surface in the north was closed. The pros­pect remained unch­anged. Lower ceiling heights in the entrance and in the chan­ging area reduce the cons­truc­tion volume. In addi­tion, the diffe­rent heights of the buil­dings created an offset at the inter­sec­tion of the roof areas, which struc­tures the Stutensee swim­ming pool both formally and from the inside. At the same time, a skylight strip supplies the inte­rior with addi­tional daylight.

Conclu­sion

Muni­cipal swim­ming pool cons­truc­tions have a lot to do with budget and opera­ting costs, and with the diverse user groups and their needs; and of course, with sustaina­bi­lity, which, in this context, trans­lates into economic effi­ci­ency and longe­vity.

The Stutensee swim­ming pool offers diffe­rent user groups diffe­rent features. All-in-one, clearly struc­tured and elegantly imple­mented; with wooden ceilings, glass facades, exposed concrete, porce­lain stone­ware and mosaic tiles. It’s actually quite a small swim­ming pool which looks extre­mely gene­rous in terms of its features. And ever­y­bo­dy’s happy.