Technology Quarter Wedau, Duisburg

An innovative technology quarter – the TQW – will be created in Wedau (Duisburg) in the coming years. This pioneering 30-hectare site is set to provide significant impetus for the overall development of the city and the region. The planning centres on the creation of a new location for the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) in Wedau. There are also plans to attract research and development companies, start-ups and co-working spaces to the new campus. The urban development framework plan by Albert Speer and Partner from 2021 has now been further elaborated by Christoph Kohl Stadtplaner Architekten and FUGMANN JANOTTA PARTNER and transformed into a masterplan.

Adapted urban development framework plan

The basic urban structure is determined by the orthogonal grid of the area. The grid is based on the “Alte Richthalle” in the centre. A central open space connects the extension of the sports park (north) with the Alte Richthalle (TQW centre) and the future 6-Seen-Wedau stop (south). The green axis has an important function as a recreational, meeting and communication space. It also links the various uses in the TQW and supports spatial orientation.

Utilisation modules and urban development

The five building blocks of the TQW are the Technology Centre, the ensemble of monuments in the south, the Knowledge Campus, the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) and the sports car park extension. The Alte Richthalle continues to form the centrepiece of the quarter. The green axis running east of the Alte Richthalle forms the centrepiece of public campus life. Central squares, rest and recreation areas are located here.

Urban structures are positioned at the entrances to the neighbourhood in the north and south to emphasise these access areas. Further high points are located in proximity to the regatta course and thus mark the special urban location of the technology quarter and university site on the waterfront. The adapted framework plan preserves and creates high-quality green and open spaces despite the higher building density.

Sports park extension and species protection

The revised framework plan also finds an appropriate solution for integration of the sprtspark extention in the north of the site. A landscape architecturally sensitive solution creates additional protected areas to fulfil the requirements of species protection. The existing wooded area (triangular area) in the western part of the planning area will be retained in principle and only supplemented by a pathway carefully integrated into the wooded area and additional sports facilities.

The adapted framework plan for the TQW forms the basis for the further procedural steps in the development plan process and the land use plan amendment.