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The Tacheles project occupies the majority of an important block in central Berlin. It is the site of the war-damaged Tacheles department store, later occupied by squatter artists. After many years of negotiations with the government and resident artists, it is to be developed as an integral part of the surrounding neighborhood. We were asked to design schemes for two buildings in the master plan prepared by Duany Plater-Zyberk. The first building, which occupies the largest central site in the plan is to be called the Beresford. It is a luxury apartment house in the spirit of its New York namesake. It occupies its own block with a private garden courtyard at its center. Its ground floor is given over to retail stores which front on the streets. The building is entered from a small south-facing motor court that provides access to the garden courtyard. Elevators and stairs in the four corners of the courtyard provide access to individual apartment floors, and most units are either "through" units with exposures on courtyard and street, or corner units, with exposures on two streets. The varied roof lines and setbacks at the top of the building provide ample opportunities for terraces, and the courtyard has a glass and steel expression that maximizes light and air for the residents and provides outdoor space for apartments on lower floors. The second building occupies a triangular block between the shopping square and the Oranienburgerstrasse, and is known as the Flatiron. The ground floor contains mostly retail space, while the upper floors are offices. A central courtyard provides light and air for inward-facing offices, and a crowning lantern marks entry into the site from the Oranienburgerstrasse.
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