Town hall (Eppingen)

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Town hall in Eppingen

The town hall in Eppingen in the district of Heilbronn in northern Baden-Württemberg was built in the Weinbrenner style by the Eppinger foreman Franz Auchter in 1824/25 according to plans by the Baden building councilor Karl August Schwarz . The building on the market square had replaced an older town hall that was in danger of collapsing elsewhere. To the south-west of the building, which was renovated in 2007, there is a modern extension. The Stuttgart architects Lederer + Ragnarsdóttir + Oei are responsible for the renovation of the existing town hall as well as for the new building completed in June 2007 . A second extension was inaugurated in September 2010.

history

The medieval old town hall of Eppingen was located in the historic old town, which was built in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the 19th century, the so-called suburb was expanded, in which the forerunner of today's market square was laid out. Because of the poor structural condition of the old town hall, the city council decided to build a new building in 1780. At that time, however, all funds available for construction purposes were used for road construction, so that the new town hall was not pursued any further for the time being. In 1787 the council applied to the government of the Electorate of the Palatinate in Heidelberg to purchase an old building on the market square, which they intended to demolish in order to build the new town hall at that point. The purchase was approved, but due to the political situation in southwest Germany after the outbreak of the French Revolution of 1789 as well as the increasing high debt of the city of Eppingen, the new building plans were not continued. In 1813 the administration was still housed in the old town hall, which was described by the district director of the Pfinz and Enz districts as being in danger of collapse and life-threatening, so that the board of directors ordered the Bretten office to immediately demolish the building and plan a new building. The Eppinger Council was instructed to hold its meetings in a different location in the meantime.

In 1814, the Karlsruhe architect Weiß presented the first construction plan for a new town hall on the market square, the construction cost of which was to be 7,477 guilders. There were objections to the plans from various residents of the market square, who feared damage to their buildings and restrictions on market operations. Some residents also offered their properties for sale. The objections were dismissed as unfounded. Nevertheless, the city asked to postpone the start of construction until 1816, as all funds would have to be used again first for road construction. But even after the postponement had ended, the new building did not begin.

The old town hall had meanwhile been sold for 783 guilders for demolition in January 1814, the council met in a rented alternative quarter. On November 4, 1819, the Eppinger Council applied to the district directorate in Durlach to repair the old town hall, which had not yet been demolished, in order to save the annual rent of 80 guilders for the alternative accommodation. However, the district directorate rejected the proposal and pushed for the demolition of the old building, which was ultimately completed by July 1820. The district directorate also instructed the city to acquire the property belonging to the Jewish merchants Regensburger on the market square, which they had already offered for sale in 1814 in order to have enough space available for the construction of the new town hall and the redesign of the market square. The redesign of the market square was necessary because the square was in poor condition at the time. It was partly built over with stables and a municipal guard house, and the residents also had their dung heaps there.

For renewed planning of the new town hall, Eppingen asked for the master builder Karl August Schwarz from the building inspection in Bruchsal to be sent , but as a sought-after architect he was still obliged to do something else and could only start planning in Eppingen in 1823. In July 1823 it was agreed to build the new building on the site of the old cellar space and the wine press building as well as the property of the Regensburger brothers. Schwarz made the necessary plans and estimated the construction costs at 11,000 guilders. Construction plans and costs were approved by the district directorate in Durlach. Then the construction work was tendered, for which the Eppinger foreman Franz Auchter was awarded the contract for 11,590 guilders. In July 1823, Auchter also received the order to demolish the Regensburg house and the wine press in order to prepare the building site, as well as the order to build a new municipal wine press to replace the demolished one.

The exact time of the start of the construction of the new town hall is unknown, but seems to have taken place without further delay after the old buildings were demolished. The shell was completed in late 1824, and the interior work was completed in 1825, which was completed with the inauguration of the building on August 25, 1825. Except for the glazing work, all construction work was carried out by Eppinger craftsmen. Some auxiliary work, such as the delivery of materials, also had to be done as compulsory labor by the citizens. With the construction of the building, the redesign and fortification of the market square went hand in hand, on which all previous stables and buildings were demolished to create a large open space. For the inauguration of the town hall, an ordinance was issued that in future prohibited the depositing of dung heaps in front of the buildings along the main streets of Eppingen, which also ensured that the new market square was kept free of the corresponding deposits.

Originally the town hall did not have a bell tower, as there was once a clock tower on the nearby Pfeifferturm . When the Pfeifferturm, also used as a prison, was rebuilt in 1827, its clock room fell victim to the rebuilding. Then it was decided to mount the clock on a bell tower on the town hall. In the bell tower, which was added in 1830, a bell, cast in 1414, was hung, which originally hung in the Leonhard Chapel in the cemetery and from 1701 in the suburban gate tower, which was demolished in 1813. The bell, which has been preserved to this day, escaped delivery of bells in both world wars due to its advanced age .

literature

  • Wilhelm Wölfle: The building of the town hall in Eppingen . In: Around the Ottilienberg . Volume 3. Heimatfreunde Eppingen , Eppingen 1985, pp. 430–437
  • City of Eppingen (ed.): Lederer Ragnarsdóttir Oei Architects: Back to the city. Eppingen town hall 1824–2007. Jovis-Verlag, Berlin 2007, ISBN 978-3-939633-49-5 .

Web links

Commons : City Hall  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Alexander Hettich: Bagger creates space for the town hall . In: Heilbronn voice . February 28, 2009 ( from Stimme.de [accessed on March 29, 2009]).
  2. ↑ http://www.stimme.de/regioticker/art16233,1943403

Coordinates: 49 ° 8 ′ 13.3 "  N , 8 ° 54 ′ 32.4"  E