DEUTSCHER KAISER
KOBLENZ

The oldest building in Koblenz, “Der deutsche Kaiser” that survived the second World War, is the last building before the Rhein and Mosel intersect and is situated on the edge of the ancient Roman development in the city.  Due to the fact that the house was not connected to any of the surrounding buildings the house was slowly tilting, thus we were given an exception to build an extension in order to stabilize the building even though the street is at risk of being flooded.

Out of respect to the original historic building – built in 1492 – the design takes a modern approach but incorporates typical characteristics of the original. The foundation of the building is to be constructed in a tufa that is typical for the region, as it is easy to clean after a flood. The upper part of the building will be a plastered façade. 

The various usages of the building, with a restaurant being on the bottom floor and the upper floors being condos, are now completely separated thanks to different entrances. The condos will be accessible from the rear making it independent from potential floodings, while the restaurant’s visitors will enter from the touristic front side of the building.