Time enough for 2010 World Cup, German architect says

Work on three of South Africa’s new stadiums for the 2010 soccer World Cup can be completed in three years, though such a tight timetable would not have been feasible in bureaucratic Germany, says a German architect involved in the project.

Hubert Nienhoff, a leading Berlin architect who has helped to design stadiums for Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth, said planning so late would have been impossible in highly regulated Germany but there was still enough time for South Africa. “The decision to begin construction now is actually too late for us Germans,” said Nienhoff, referring to his country’s web of rules that give a wide range of agencies and the public the right to inspect and challenge any significant building project.Nienhoff said the renovation work on Germany’s 12 World Cup stadiums for this year’s finals had to be planned much further in advance to meet the strict requirements.”By 1999, we were already planning for the Olympic Stadium.That’s seven years before the event took place,” he told journalists in Berlin recently.South Africa will also have a smaller budget than Germany for its World Cup, the first to be held in Africa.The South Africa organising committee has said that the total stadium costs will be about 6 billion rand ($858 million).Germany spent 1.5 billion euros ($1.92 billion) for building or upgrading its 12 stadiums.South Africa’s budget covers the costs for 10 new and existing venues in nine host cities.The opening match and final have been set for Johannesburg’s Soccer City, which will seat 104 000 after renovations.WIDESPREAD ACCLAIM Nienhoff, a partner at Germany’s leading Gerkan, Marg and Partner (GMP) architecture firm, said the three stadiums designed by his company would be finished a year ahead of time in 2009 and would be unlike any others in World Cup history.”I’m extremely impressed with South Africa – with the beautiful landscape as well as the people.Our partners there are very goal-oriented and determined,” he said.The firm won widespread acclaim for its work on German World Cup stadiums in Cologne, Frankfurt and Berlin.It also designed Berlin’s new, futuristic, glass-domed central train station.”I think one could say the stadiums in Germany are state-of-the-art and they have set the latest standard,” Nienhoff said.Nienhoff said GMP had been working closely with African artists and planners to ensure that the new stadiums reflected the region’s culture.Of the three they have designed, the 85 000-seat King’s Park Stadium in coastal Durban, a popular tourist destination, will be the largest.The three-tier Durban stadium will be patterned after the South African flag, with two overhead arches – fused together at one end – spanning the length of the arena.A ‘Skywalk’ is planned for the arches and the building is designed to withstand strong winds off the nearby Indian Ocean.”We feel fortunate to have got such a perfect location in Durban and it is important that the stadium stands out from the city skyline,” Nienhoff said.TRANSPORT SYSTEM The Durban stadium would belie fears of inadequate transport links, he said, with access to a motorway and a railway station.South African President Thabo Mbeki last month announced a three-billion-rand ($432-million) spending programme to upgrade the country’s decrepit public transport system.In Port Elizabeth, Nelson Mandela Bay Arena will be built near the North End Lake and will seat 40 000.The new arena in Cape Town will seat 70 000 and will have a retractable roof.It has already been earmarked to host one of the semi-finals.Local municipalities will pay 56 million euros for the new arena in Port Elizabeth and roughly 170 million euros each for the new projects in Cape Town and Durban.By comparison, GMP restorations to Berlin’s Olympic Stadium, the site of this year’s final, cost 250 million euros.Nienhoff said the new stadiums would be multi-functional and not soccer-specific, in accordance with South African officials’ hopes of one day hosting other major sporting events such as the Commonwealth Games or Olympics.Nampa-Reuters”The decision to begin construction now is actually too late for us Germans,” said Nienhoff, referring to his country’s web of rules that give a wide range of agencies and the public the right to inspect and challenge any significant building project.Nienhoff said the renovation work on Germany’s 12 World Cup stadiums for this year’s finals had to be planned much further in advance to meet the strict requirements.”By 1999, we were already planning for the Olympic Stadium.That’s seven years before the event took place,” he told journalists in Berlin recently.South Africa will also have a smaller budget than Germany for its World Cup, the first to be held in Africa.The South Africa organising committee has said that the total stadium costs will be about 6 billion rand ($858 million).Germany spent 1.5 billion euros ($1.92 billion) for building or upgrading its 12 stadiums.South Africa’s budget covers the costs for 10 new and existing venues in nine host cities.The opening match and final have been set for Johannesburg’s Soccer City, which will seat 104 000 after renovations.WIDESPREAD ACCLAIM Nienhoff, a partner at Germany’s leading Gerkan, Marg and Partner (GMP) architecture firm, said the three stadiums designed by his company would be finished a year ahead of time in 2009 and would be unlike any others in World Cup history.”I’m extremely impressed with South Africa – with the beautiful landscape as well as the people.Our partners there are very goal-oriented and determined,” he said.The firm won widespread acclaim for its work on German World Cup stadiums in Cologne, Frankfurt and Berlin.It also designed Berlin’s new, futuristic, glass-domed central train station.”I think one could say the stadiums in Germany are state-of-the-art and they have set the latest standard,” Nienhoff said.Nienhoff said GMP had been working closely with African artists and planners to ensure that the new stadiums reflected the region’s culture.Of the three they have designed, the 85 000-seat King’s Park Stadium in coastal Durban, a popular tourist destination, will be the largest.The three-tier Durban stadium will be patterned after the South African flag, with two overhead arches – fused together at one end – spanning the length of the arena.A ‘Skywalk’ is planned for the arches and the building is designed to withstand strong winds off the nearby Indian Ocean.”We feel fortunate to have got such a perfect location in Durban and it is important that the stadium stands out from the city skyline,” Nienhoff said.TRANSPORT SYSTEM The Durban stadium would belie fears of inadequate transport links, he said, with access to a motorway and a railway station.South African President Thabo Mbeki last month announced a three-billion-rand ($432-million) spending programme to upgrade the country’s decrepit public transport system.In Port Elizabeth, Nelson Mandela Bay Arena will be built near the North End Lake and will seat 40 000.The new arena in Cape Town will seat 70 000 and will have a retractable roof.It has already been earmarked to host one of the semi-finals.Local municipalities will pay 56 million euros for the new arena in Port Elizabeth and roughly 170 million euros each for the new projects in Cape Town and Durban.By comparison, GMP restorations to Berlin’s Olympic Stadium, the site of this year’s final, cost 250 million euros.Nienhoff said the new stadiums would be multi-functional and not soccer-specific, in accordance with South African officials’ hopes of one day hosting other major sporting events such as the Commonwealth Games or Olympics.Nampa-Reuters