Germany stadium work on amidst COVID-19

Article posted by Coliseum, April 21^st, 2020

Image: AJ Schmidt/Freiburg

Regardless of the coronavirus situation, work is on in full swing for the new stadium of SC Freiburg – the German football club, based in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, in Germany.

Going by the work progress, it is being presumed that the new facility for SC Freiburg – SC Freiburg Stadion – would be delivered this year as was planned.

However, workers from various construction sites in the city of Freiburg are complaining about the lack of basic protective equipment taking into view the coronavirus pandemic.

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Work is on merrily in several construction sites of Germany though COVID-19 continues to rip the world apart. Among them is the new football facility at Wolfswinkel, the 34,700 SC Freiburg Stadion, the price tag of which is €76 mln.

Municipal authorities confirmed recently that the project has seen no hiccups till date and is on track. However, the city also warned that “even if the development work is fully on schedule, it is not yet clear to what extent the effects of the corona-crisis will affect various areas of work.”

According to the IG Bau labour union, workers from the biggest sites in Freiburg have been complaining about lack of access to basic sanitary facilities like soap, toilet paper or paper towels. Media reports stated that some workers are refusing to come to work fearing serious health issues amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

IG Bau is a trade union in Germany with a membership of 350,000. The labour union is active in the sectors of construction and engineering, building materials, building cleaning, facility management, gardening, forestry and agriculture.

If work goes on course, the new SC Freiburg Stadion should be in a position to open its doors before July-end this year and the first game will kick off by mid-2020. Work on the venue started in 2019 and the progress is remarkable, and the prefabricated structure is to attribute for it. Work on the auditorium is almost complete, with the roof covering more sections every day. Work on the road network outside has already begun, while in May this year connection of commuter train (S-Bahn) should commence.

Stadium specifics

Based on a referendum in 2015, the city of Freiburg decided to build a brand new football stadium in Wolfswinkel area – SC Freiburg Stadion – beside a local airport. The development is part of a much larger urban scheme that will see residential estates springing up in and around it.

Launched in 2016, the international tender for best and most efficient stadium concept was won by renowned companies HPP and Köster who proposed simple yet distinctive architecture along with a well-equipped infrastructure for €76 million, below the city’s initial estimates of €80-90 million. While built largely with prefabricated elements, the stadium shouldn’t become an ‘identikit’ venue with its diagonal ties and imposing rectangular roof.

The stadium is expected to hold in nearly 35,000 supporters taking into consideration the fact that the stadium is being built 25 meters above ground. The stands will have two tiers each with a rather low number of VIP/premium seats (2,000).

Keeping the environment factor in mind, the arena will use a heating system that should reduce its carbon footprint by 550 tons of CO2 per year. Its roof will also allow the creation of photovoltaic panels.

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