In designing Hybrid House Hamburg, MVRDV researched the broad range of ingredients that influence the diverse character and composition of Hamburg. These ingredients form a mixed-use high-rise building containing commercial, hospitality, and residential program. A future-proof strategy implemented in the building’s structure enables easy adaptation in the face of future uncertainties. Four circulation cores – two of which are independent – enable vertical separation into 2-4 autonomous units should the client wish to sell sections in future, or should growth in any one of the units be necessary. This way, the building acts as a collection that can be added to, or subtracted from, without weakening the legibility of the total form. It also reads as a whole with three conventional parts: the public base, a flexible middle section, and an impressive capital summit in the sky deck.

With a hybrid timber and concrete skeletal construction, the design signals an ambition to incorporate sustainable materials and construction methods, as well as the support of healthy and inspiring indoor environments for occupants, with glulam structural members, cross-laminated timber walls, and ceiling panels.

In addition to the hotel program, with retail and hospitality included in the plinth, in the sky deck’s summit, MVRDV includes apartments in the concept for this mixed-use building in the urban Hammerbrook context. Given the impact of traffic noise at lower floor levels, the design includes a southwest-facing stepped volume from the 14th floor, which creates optimal outdoor living environments for residential use, flooding the apartments with natural light, and providing a strong connection to inspiring views of the city, including the Hafencity, Elbphilharmonie, and city centre.

Hybrid House Hamburg presents a highly flexible building concept, with a future-proof structure that facilitates transformation, and reconciles pressing societal needs with commercial ambitions.