Old town – Currently, the Max-Joseph-Platz in front of the opera serves as the entrance to the underground car park. That must change. Last November, the Building Department submitted plans for a temporary redesign. The City Council will decide this Tuesday. If he agrees – which is what everything looks like at the moment – the renewal process will begin next September.
The new space should be ready in December 2025. Munich residents will not be able to drink their first cold drink in the sun at the new Max Josef Platz until spring 2026.
Similar to Gärtnerplatz, there will be grass
The square's design model is a plan dating back to 1825. In this plan, the circular ring in the middle, where the monument to King Max Joseph stands, is divided into eight fields. As at Gärtnerplatz, the fields must be planted with grass, which the building management wants to keep short. The department wants to create “movable furniture to stay in.”
The Izar stones, which have certainly caused one or two women wearing high-heeled shoes to crack their ankles, are gone. Instead, the paths are paved with a beige gravel mix. This makes the place free of obstructions. The entrance to the underground parking lot must be “as narrow as possible,” according to the draft resolution. The building department wants to restrict the road with restrictions. The resulting surface is sprayed with an adhesive layer and sprinkled with beige fine aggregate. On the one hand, the color should highlight the entrance to the underground car park, and on the other hand, it should match the property.
There should also be planting: spring-flowering tall bushes are planned in round metal containers. There should be round benches around the ships. The building department promises “a plethora of commercial-free seating options” in the sun and shade. Plants and furniture must be movable so that they can be transported for events – for example by the opera house.
CSU engraved around the “Dedicated Garden in Front of the Opera”
About a year ago, Green Building Officer Jean-Marie Ebauer presented plans for the redesign. The green speaker was thinking of the wild perennials and richly flowered herbs of the time. But the Antiquities Protection Authority responded with horror and objected to it. The Christian Social Union also complained about the “park in front of the opera” at that time. The Christian Social Union, like the Social Democratic Party, wants to approve the new plans. Ultimately, many points of criticism were accepted. In fact, the place looks a lot tougher than it did in the first renderings.
The redesign is expected to cost €3.87 million. The fact that the amount is not higher is also that it will not be the last time the city council will renovate the square.
The city actually wants to free up space from the underground parking corridor and perhaps move it to Maximilianstrasse. This requires a larger construction site. But as long as the railways build a new Marienhof S-Bahn station behind the town hall, this is not possible.
Opera for All has to find a new home
In 2029, as completion nears, the City Council will again consider a permanent redesign of the plaza. For example, he could organize a startup competition in the 2030s. The construction site for the temporary space hardly causes any restrictions, at least this year. According to the building department, traditional Oktoberfest costumes can be displayed as usual. Things will look different in 2025. The “Opera for All” cannot be held, at least on Max-Joseph-Platz and an alternative venue must be found. The construction site for IAA 2025 will be boycotted.
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