They are a phenomenon found in many cities: urban spaces that are now “plazas” in name only. At best the name is reminiscent of the former purpose and value of these places, which today serve only as utilitarian, gray traffic zones. This also was true of “Rosenplatz” or “Rose Plaza” in Osnabrück, Germany. Adapted to the demands of heavy motor vehicle traffic, and its intensive use as a multi-lane thoroughfare, the space could no longer be called a plaza in any sense of the word. Neither the type of buildings lining the street nor the way the majority of the adjacent spaces were being used could be called typical of a plaza. What’s more, nothing was even faintly reminiscent of the former rose beds after which it was named.

The design by architect Oliver Bormann and landscape architect Martin Diekmann succeeds in a variety of ways in breaking and transforming its dominant character as a main urban road. By enhancing the space and adding new opportunities for using it, the new design has finally made Rosenplatz inviting once more. One of the core design elements used by the architects was concrete pavement integrally colored with Bayferrox® color pigments in different shades of pink.
With their design and the use of Bayferrox® 130 and Bayferrox® 160, the architects created a space that is a hybrid of a road and a plaza. Rosenplatz in Osnabrück has been restored to its purpose as a plaza and regained its characteristic colors. Bayferrox® color pigments, with their outstanding light- and weather-stability, ensure that the plaza simultaneously fulfills all the competing demands imposed on a main road.

Fotos: © Sören Deppe

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