Schneider & Schneider

Description

To improve the infrastructure of the public safety answering point and the cantonal police headquarters, the existing building in the Aarau city district of Telli was to be expanded and a new wing added to the north façade. The result is a new emergency services headquarters that handles all emergency calls from the canton of Aargau. Police operations could be continued uninterrupted during the entire construction period. The orthogonal concept of the existing building is taken up in the extension but liberated from its formal rigidity. Several horizontal layers of space are brought together in the new volume and offset, creating tailor-made premises for the functions within while complementing the look of the existing building with a sculptural addition. The building specifications called for a two-lane drive-through passageway under the new wing. The fluted façade cladding – made of large prefabricated concrete elements – provides both privacy and sun protection while emphasising the striking configuration of the new volume and distinguishing it from its older neighbour. The alternating open and closed surfaces map the uses inside: behind the large windows are workplaces, while technical building equipment is concealed behind the smaller, slit-like openings.