Revision phase

On 18 March 2004 the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) decided to invite the three prize winners of the international urban planning and architectural design competition for the new ECB premises to participate in the project’s revision phase:

• Coop Himmelb(l)au, Vienna, Austria;
• ASP Schweger Assoziierte, Berlin, Germany;
• 54f architekten/T. R. Hamzah & Yeang, Darmstadt, Germany/Selangor, Malaysia.

The main purpose of the revision phase was to review the design proposals to take account of the recommendations and requirements of the jury, the ECB and the City of Frankfurt. This phase was therefore conducted in close cooperation with the City of Frankfurt.

On 13 January 2005 the Governing Council reached a decision on the design of the ECB’s new premises. After extensive discussions and a careful evaluation, based on the selection criteria (see: Competition Rules), of the strengths and weaknesses of all three prize-winning designs, the Governing Council concluded that the revised design concept of Coop Himmelb(l)au best meets the functional and technical requirements specified by the ECB, and has features that reflect the ECB’s values and translate them into architectural language. This decision confirms the judgement of the international jury, who awarded first prize to this project.