Before the revitalisation, the unstructured cube had no real connection to the historical urban context, but stood free to the street. The premise was to reclaim an urban building block that reflect the historic urban structure while maintaining the substance of the building and at the same time providing a contemporary façade.
The seven-storey building was largely gutted as part of the sustainable substance renewal and added by two storeys, which were staggered back. Furthermore, it was modernised and its design was upgraded with a new façade made of light-coloured fibre cement panels. Replaced by new structures, the single-storey annexes and the 5-storey connecting part to the neighbouring building were combined with the existing office building to form a harmonious overall complex.
In this way, the building now responds to the city layout, blends into the neighbourhood and is recognisable as a type of Hamburg's Kontorhaus (traditional office building). The view of the striking tower of the Nikolai Church has been freed up by the removal of the gable front on Willy-Brandt-Strasse. Along the Ost-West-Strasse, the building is supplemented by an extension that runs alongside the street. The recess of the two-storey glazed ground floor allowed the building to be connected to the business district and a shopping arcade.
