The Technisches Rathaus stands before you. A sturdy building. It wasn’t always so.
The Technisches Rathaus in Flensburg wasn’t the city’s first town hall. The original town hall stood on the Thingplatz. It served Flensburg until 1882. Then it was demolished. The city then used the Regierungshof as a temporary town hall. This was insufficient. The administration spread across the city.
In the early 1960s plans for a new town hall developed. Hertie department store offered three million DM for the Regierungshof. The city planned to spend five million DM on the new town hall. The council decided to build. They wanted to centralize the administration again.
The chosen location was a large plot at Am Pferdewasser. Previously a building material trade stood there. The new building would be more representative. It would become a new landmark. Carl-Friedrich Fischer designed it. He also designed the Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt building in Flensburg-Mürwik.
Construction began in August 1961. The foundation stone was laid in November 1961. The move was completed in May 1964. The old Regierungshof was demolished that year. The new town hall officially opened in April 1965.
The building was seventeen stories high. It contrasted with older historical buildings. The exterior walls were clad with Norwegian quartzite slabs. A large Flensburg coat of arms was affixed on the south side. In the 1990s the address became Rathausplatz 1.
The architect planned a grand forecourt on the south side. This never happened. The town hall still lacks a truly impressive entrance. In the 1960s there was little regard for existing urban structures. Vast transformations ignored the historic cityscape.
The town hall’s basement also housed a Cold War atomic bomb shelter. The reinforced concrete ceiling was 2-3 meters thick. It could withstand an 80-kiloton nuclear blast and chemical attacks. In an emergency it would hold up to 2000 people. Supplies could last two weeks.
In the 1990s the concrete facade deteriorated. Repairs started. The facade was largely reclad with orange-colored tiles. The large city coat of arms disappeared. The renovation improved accessibility for citizens. The Bürgerbüro was redesigned. The renovation cost 51 million Marks. The initial building cost 23 million Marks.
The Technisches Rathaus stands today. A testament to Flensburg’s history. It’s a reminder of the city’s evolution. A building that endured a renovation. It holds a unique place in Flensburg’s story. And a secret bunker in its basement.