At the Heart of It: Holzkirchen Reconnected

BIP (Blended Intensive Programme) project in Bavaria, Germany

The photo shows a group of people standing in a row on a grassy summit. In the background, you can see a summit cross, forested mountains, clouds, and blue sky.

Mountain tour to the Kratzer above Lake Tegernsee on the first day (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

Photo detail. Audience members are seated in the foreground. Two speakers are standing in front of them. A wall can be seen in the background.

Workshop kick-off in Holzkirchen with an introduction by Mayor Christoph Schmid and Eva-Maria Schmitz (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The photo shows a seminar room with wooden tables and chairs where people are sitting. Windows can be seen in the background

Workshop kick-off in Holzkirchen (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

Photo detail of a group of people in a parking lot. Trees and buildings can be seen in the background.

Visit of the project area - the market square and its connection to the train station via Münchner Straße - with Eva-Maria Schmitz (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

Photo detail of a group of people standing in a row, looking in one direction and photographed from the front. Trees can be seen in the background.

Visit of the project area - the market square and its connection to the train station via Münchner Straße - with Eva-Maria Schmitz (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

Photo detail of a group of people standing in a row, looking in one direction and photographed from the front. Trees and buildings can be seen in the background.

Visit of the project area - the market square and its connection to the train station via Münchner Straße - with Eva-Maria Schmitz (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The photo shows a group of people standing on a sidewalk. There is a road on the right-hand side, while buildings and a tree can be seen in the background.

Visit of the project area - the market square and its connection to the train station via Münchner Straße - with Eva-Maria Schmitz (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The photo shows a group of people standing around a table on which plans are laid out. Walls and a window can be seen in the background.

Workshop phase on site (photo: Olaf Schroth)

The image shows a top view of a table with plans, sketch paper, and pens on it.

Workshop phase on site (photo: Olaf Schroth)

The photo shows a group of people standing behind a table on which plans are laid out. Walls and windows can be seen in the background.

Workshop phase on site (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The photo shows four people leaning over a table covered with plans. In the background, you can see a wall with plans pinned to it.

Workshop phase on site (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The group photo shows a square paved with gray natural stone. Three people are sitting in deck chairs in the front row. Behind them is another row of people. In the background, there is a green sculpture representing a "b", a lantern, and a building with the inscription “Rathaus” (town hall).

Group photo in front of Holzkirchen's town hall, view from the market square (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

Photo detail. On the left, a person can be seen standing in front of a window. To the right of them is a display board with plans.

Prof. Dr. Olaf Schroth (HSWT) at the beginning of the final presentation in Freising-Weihenstephan (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The photo shows a seminar room with tables and chairs where people are sitting. A wall and a window can be seen in the background.

Audience of the final presentation, with representatives from the market town of Holzkirchen and the IBA Munich (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The photo shows a seminar room with tables and chairs where people are sitting. A wall and a cupboard can be seen in the background.

Audience of the final presentation: participating students, HSWT colleagues and guests (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

Photo detail showing a person standing on the left side of the image pointing to a map hanging on the wall on the right.

Student presentation of the workshop results (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

The image shows a section of a photograph of a group of people standing on a grassy hill and looking at the camera. A lake and buildings can be seen in the background.

Optional excursion to Munich's Olympic Park with a few participants before their departure (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

Photo. A lake can be seen in the foreground. Grass-covered hills with trees can be seen in the background. Branches with leaves can be seen in the upper left corner of the picture. There is a tree on the right side of the picture.

Optional excursion to Munich's Olympic Park with a few participants before their departure (photo: Stefanie Gruber)

In September 2025 the second project of a so-called ‚Design Caroussel‘, which is organized as a series of four different BIP (Blended Intensive Programme) projects, took place with an intensive workshop phase in Holzkirchen and Freising.

This ‚Design Caroussel‘ is a joint cooperation of the following four university partners with their participating students:

VHL / Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences, Velp (The Netherlands)
EhB / Erasmus Brussels University of Applied Sciences and Arts (Belgium)
Vilnius Tech / Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (Lithuania)
HSWT / University of Applied Sciences Weihenstephan-Triesdorf (Germany)

While the first BIP project in 2024dealt with the topic 'Sustainable Development of the Dutch Wadden Coast', took place on the West Frisian Island of Ameland and was organized by the colleagues from the Netherlands, this year's BIP took place in Bavaria, Germany, and was initiated and coordinated by the IMLA team of the HSWT.

Topic of this year's project was 'At the Heart of It: Holzkirchen Reconnected'. It was organized in cooperation with the market town of Holzkirchen and the IBA Munich Metropolitan Region 2024-2034.

A team of lecturers from the above-mentioned universities and their students, 28 people in total, took part in the BIP. They joined the preparatory online lectures at the beginning of September as well as the on site workshop phase mid of September in Holzkirchen and at the HSWT in Freising-Weihenstephan.

Task of the workshop was the development of future-oriented ideas for a redesign of Holzkirchen's central market square and its connection to the train station via Münchner Straße.

Assignment 1 focused on the market square: the concept should enhance the quality of stay, improve climate resilience, social interaction, accessibility and visual coherence and create a vibrant and event-friendly meeting place.

Assignment 2 was about creating a series of spatial interventions along the very busy Münchner Straße that guide and enrich the pedestrian journey from Holzkirchen’s train station to its market square, forming a 'pearl necklace' of urban moments.

Both tasks were worked on by two teams each, with the teams deliberately mixed with students from the different universities.

The workshop results were presented on 18 September at the HSWT in Freising, in presence of representatives from the market town of Holzkirchen and the IBA Munich.

A special thanks goes to the market town of Holzkirchen, the IBA Munich and our HSWT International Office for their great support as well as to Erasmus+ for the funding of the BIP.

And of course to all participating students and colleagues for their ambitious participation and their contributions.

We are now very much looking forward to the next 'Design Caroussel' BIP project in the year 2026 which will be organized by the Vilnius Tech team in Lithuania.

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IMLA News Contact

Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences
Faculty of Landscape Architecture
Am Hofgarten 4
D-85350 Freising, Germany
+49 8161 71 3119
imla(at)hswt.de