La Bundesbank Pack your boxes. After more than half a century, the German central bank is ready to say farewell to its historic headquarters in Frankfurt and has a European tender has been launched to find its new headquarters. The project to redevelop and expand the Wilhelm-Epstein-Straße complex, the imposing reinforced concrete building that has become a symbol of German Brutalist architecture, has thus been shelved. The new path chosen by the Bundesbank instead passes throughpurchase of a turnkey property, including the land and located within the city of Frankfurt. It may be a completely new construction or an existing building undergoing complete renovation.
“With the purchase of a new location, we are creating a cost-effective, modern and at the same time long-term sustainable solution for our headquarters,” he explained. Stephan Bredt, Chief Operating Officer of the Bundesbank, announcing the start of the procedure.
A European tender, with the award expected by 2027
Il the process will be divided into two phasesThe first phase involves the selection of candidates, the submission of offers, and the subsequent negotiations until the purchase contract is signed. After the award, the design and construction, or renovation, phase will begin, leading up to the property's delivery to the central bank and subsequent transfer.
The Bundesbank intends to identify themost economically advantageous offer Based on several parameters, including price, building quality, project management, and delivery times. Location and public transportation connections will also play a significant role. "A good location and excellent local public transportation connections are also important to us, so that we can be easily reached by our employees, external business partners, and visitors," Bredt emphasized.
The central bank's goal is to reach the award by the end of 2027The future headquarters will have to accommodate approximately 2.500 workstations, as well as approximately 15.000 square meters of space for specialized and functional areas. Requirements also considered include safety, sustainability, technical features, and interior design.
The old headquarters bill and the U-turn on the mega campus
The turning point had already been announced in March, when the board of directors led by president Joachim Nagel had decided to look for another property in Frankfurt. The choice was based on a cost-effectiveness study that found purchasing a new location significantly less costly than remaining in the historic complex.
The current headquarters of the Bundesbank is located in the Bockenheim district, on Wilhelm-Epstein-Straße, and is one of the most recognizable buildings of post-war German institutional architecture. Built between 1967 and 1972 designed by the ABB studio, the large reinforced concrete complex represents an important example of German Brutalist architecture and it was declared protected monument in 2022The building's historical and architectural value made the redevelopment project even more complex and costly. "The economic sustainability analysis clearly showed that purchasing a property is significantly more cost-effective than locating the Bundesbank headquarters at its current location," Nagel explained.
For the property in Wilhelm-Epstein-Straße, the central bank had calculated approximately 1,6 billion euros of total investments, including not only the renovation of the main building but also the necessary interventions to adapt the entire complex to the needs of the headquarters. Taking into account management and maintenance costs until 2067, the overall estimated present value rose to approximately €2,9 billion.
The project had already undergone a profound revision after the pandemicThe spread of remote working had in fact reduced the need compared to the approximately 5.000 workstations initially planned. According to Reuters, the increase in prices, the difficulties associated with the removal of toxic materials and architectural protection constraints had contributed to further increasing costs. An estimate of the German Federal Court of Audit had indicated for the original project a total expenditure up to 4,6 billion euros.
The gold remains where it is, the old complex could become a European school
The move of the Bundesbank will not, however, lead to the relocation of the gold reserves held under the current complex. The headquarters' vaults contain approximately 1.710 tons of gold, more than half of the German reserves held by the central bank, which will remain in their current location. The Coin Museum should remain in the areaThe rest of the complex, however, has a completely different future. The city of Frankfurt has expressed interest in purchasing parts of the property, and the idea is to house the European School of Frankfurt, attended primarily by the children of European Central Bank employees.
This would close a chapter that began with the ambitious project to transform the historic Brutalist headquarters into a modern Bundesbank campus. The German central bank has now chosen a more pragmatic path: changing its location, containing costs, and searching the market for a building already designed to meet the needs of an institution that, post-pandemic, needs far fewer offices than imagined just a few years ago.
