Kurhaus Bad Homburg
| Kurhaus Bad Homburg | |
|---|---|
 Front of the postmodern Kurhaus |
|
| Data | |
| place | Bad Homburg vdH |
| architect | Architectural association Fischer-Glaser-Kretschmer |
| Architectural style | Postmodern |
| Construction year | 1982-1984 |
The Kurhaus Bad Homburg is the name of several buildings in Bad Homburg vor der Höhe , each of which fulfilled the function of a Kurhaus .
precursor
Since 1810 there was an administrator, fountain and bath house in Bad Homburg and since 1824 a restaurant in the later spa park. Both buildings were referred to as "Curhaus" in contemporary reports, but could only cover the functions of a Kurhaus in a rudimentary manner. After the Ludwigsquelle, the first medicinal spring in Bad Homburg, was discovered in the 1820s , there was a desire to become a spa town in Bad Homburg. In 1830 the plan was made to found a stock corporation to build a spa park and spa house. The Darmstadt architect Georg Moller presented plans that were based on the representative Kurhaus in Wiesbaden . However, the financing of the estimated 100,000 guilders could not be raised, and no agreement was reached on the planning. The project failed in 1833. In 1838/39 the “Fountain Room” was built in the spa gardens as a “Kursaal” for social events.
Old Kurhaus
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Landgrave Ludwig concluded a contract in 1840 with the twin brothers François and Louis Blanc (born December 12, 1806 near Avignon ), who were to build a spa in return for the concession to operate the Bad Homburg casino . Architect Jean Baptiste Métivier planned a representative building in the classical style . The foundation stone was laid on May 23, 1841, and after two years of construction, the building on Louisenstrasse was opened for use in August 1843. In addition to the casino, it included ballrooms, a restaurant and a large terrace facing the spa gardens.
The building was expanded as early as 1850. According to the plans of the Brussels architect Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar , two side wings were built, which gave the building a castle-like appearance. The game room was housed in the left wing (whose contemporary name "Goldsaal" gives an indication of the splendor of the building) and the Kurtheater in the right wing. This was opened with the specially written piece “La fée de Hombourg”.
With the ban on gaming on December 31, 1872, the gaming hall was also used as an event hall. However, as the number of visitors fell due to the casino ban, the premises were largely empty. For this reason, the city's Saalburg Museum and the ethnographic collections of Prince Adalbert of Prussia moved into the Kurhaus.
On March 8, 1945, the Kurhaus was destroyed to the ground by Allied bombers.
Post-war Kurhaus
After the war, it was decided not to rebuild the old Kurhaus in its old form. The new building was financed by Hermann Heidtmann, who became the casino's concessionaire in 1949. On September 2, 1950, the foundation stone was laid for the new Kurhaus, which was built according to the plans of the architects Bartels, Schweitzer and Hufnagel. The focus was now on the use as a conference and congress building. The “Prinz von Homburg” hotel was also built on the site as a conference hotel. The spa theater was given a separate building with 850 seats on the Schwedenpfad. After the completion of the Kurhaus, the Kreissparkasse of the Obertaunuskreis moved from the old district office to the outbuilding of the Kurhaus and opened its main office there on April 18, 1953.
The Kurhaus was the first Kurhaus to be built in Germany after the Second World War . However, complaints were made about many functional defects. A large number of renovation attempts and plans were made, and finally the city of Bad Homburg decided, according to an expert report, to build a new building.
Postmodern spa house
The plans for the new building of the Kurhaus were awarded to the Fischer-Glaser-Kretschmer architects in 1978. The plans envisaged the demolition and the construction of a post-modern spa and congress center. This planning led to a heated debate in the city and the establishment of a citizens' initiative against the new building. The Kurhaus question divided not only the population, but also the parties. Mayor Armin Klein ( CDU ) spoke out decisively against the project. In the 1980 mayoral election, the CDU therefore decided not to vote for Klein, but for Wolfgang Assmann to be nominated . Klein then ran as a candidate for the SPD, but did not receive a majority.
The Kurhaus was then built. After the foundation stone was laid on March 13, 1982, the new building was opened to the public in April 1984. As early as 2009, 25 years later, there were again voices for a new building.
swell
- Ulrich Eisenbach: The Blanc Brothers and Roulette , in: IHK internal 05/08 , pages 8-10
- Angelika Baeumerth: Bad Homburg and his "health resorts" . In: Ingrid Berg: Heimat Hochtaunus . Kramer, Frankfurt 1988, ISBN 3-7829-0375-7 , pages 392-396.
- Barbara Dölemeyer: The fate of the casino - mother of Monte Carlo . In: Ingrid Berg: Heimat Hochtaunus . Kramer, Frankfurt 1988, ISBN 3-7829-0375-7 , pages 457-462.
Individual evidence
- ^ Taunus Sparkasse. Retrieved August 27, 2017 .
- ↑ Report on the 85th birthday of Armin Klein in the Taunus Zeitung of 15 June 2007, page 21
Web links
Coordinates: 50 ° 13 ′ 41 ″ N , 8 ° 37 ′ 37 ″ E