The City Archives is like a “treasure chest”: it is reservation of collective memories of the city. The Archives serves not only as a repertoire for the current storage but also space for the accumulation in the coming 15 years. According to the plan, all storage rooms are located in a two-storey rectangular building. The exterior wall is made of prefabricated concrete parts that are patterned with vertical lines and covered by creme-white reflecting paint.
The rectangular shaped volume resembles a unique chest and is supported by a one-storey pedestal.
The facilities on the ground floor are accessible from the entry courtyard. Through the entrance hall is a vista axis connecting the entry courtyard and the northern courtyard. The ground floor is endued by façades of translucent profiled glass. Such a structure serves as a covering up shaped by changeable, vertical lines and meanwhile as a sunshade, from which mild light are allowed to pass and covers the needs in offices and reading rooms.
For the purpose of flood protection, the entire building is lifted with an extra 1.5 meter and the finished floor level of the ground floor is consequently of the height HN 3.1 meters.
The retaining wall under the pedestal is made of row concrete furnished with vertical formwork and the exterior surface of the building is correspondently decorated with vertical lines, among which different distances applied. Variously smooth surfaces integrate themselves into each other and thus lending the enclosure an overall coherent tone. But if observed closely, it presents itself also with subtle changes and individual characteristics.
The ground floor includes a green roof that abides the rainwater and adjusts the microclimate. The upper volume is enrobed with walls perforated only with few windows. Outside of the concrete retaining wall and insulation is an additional layer of prefabricated concrete parts, which further improves the insulating function. Moreover, the ventilating system is installed to constantly control the temperature and air humidity in the storage rooms. In the corridors are also PV-modules set up to make use of the skylight and further cover the electricity needs in the building.