The interview was conducted in German. Free translation by our editors.

Since the Düsseldorf council meeting on June 15, it has been clear that the new opera house will be built on Heinrich-Heine-Allee in the heart of the city. The project is being realized by IPM, Immobilien-Projekt-Management Düsseldorf, a subsidiary of the city of Düsseldorf.

For years, there have been passionate discussions and arguments about the new opera house in Düsseldorf. The project is creatively named "Opera of the Future". At the council meeting on June 15, it was decided that the new building, rather than a reconstruction, should be built on Heinrich-Heine-Allee. This was preceded by an urban planning ideas competition in which Düsseldorf offices, as well as international offices, presented highly imaginative operas. There seems to be no turning back from this decision, at least if IPM, a wholly owned subsidiary of the city, has its way. Incidentally, it will build the 100-meter-high technical city hall at the same time. IPM says it employs 24 people, one of whom will be responsible for the interim opera and another for the opera. The company plans to hire 2 additional project management offices for the large opera project. Now IPM is preparing a non-open competition for June 2024, in which more than 20 international offices can participate. The contract with the winner is to be concluded in the summer of 2025. However, according to IPM, there is still a lack of experts for opera construction, including interior and exterior acoustics, because they would be hard to find.

The day the first curtain falls is not expected to be until 2033; this would even be "sporting planning," according to IPM. "As a developer, we would like to see a cost limit defined in the bidding process," Dr. Labbert said. Whether that's realistic will be seen in the designs and pricing that will take place between now and then. "There are concerns in parts of politics that such a high sum should not be made available," Dr. Labbert continues. But he says he is convinced that the opera will add value and points to the financial investments made by investors, for example, after the construction of the Kö-Bogen tunnel.

Another major issue is the interim building, because it must already be in place when the opera house is demolished in 2027. According to IPM, there are currently no used interim buildings on the market; these have all been sold to China. By the way, a new opera house is currently being built in Guangzhou; it is 10 times larger than the opera house in Paris, which in turn is 10 times larger than the Düsseldorf opera house will ever be. 

30. July 2023

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Interview Directory 

DÜSSELDORF

Name: Dr. Heinrich Labbert

Occupation: Managing Director IPM, Immobilien-Projekt-Management Düsseldorf

"In time and in budget".

How did you come to IPM and what's next for your company after the council's decision on June 15?

I'm a construction engineer and read an ad that a project manager was being recruited for the Kö-Bogen Tunnel project. I then built it and it resulted in the company IPM in 2015. As a 100 percent city subsidiary, we are now thankfully doing the new opera. We have built a great potential of trust, headline: "In time and in budget". We are also building the new technical city hall, a 110-meter high city hall.

According to your timetable, the text for the new competition should be ready by 2024. Does it take that long just to create the text?

This is a very complex matter. We are trying to define the quality, how big the spaces are, what functions we need, what the framework is for the building and the environment. By 2025, the non-open international competition will follow; we will draw 20 to 25 planning offices under the quality conditions. These will receive a "respectable" compensation for pain, but it will never be equal to the effort. If you allow an infinite number of offices, this is no longer possible, because you would then be rid of the first millions for the remuneration of the work. These numbers are a projection that we believe we can achieve.

In the June 15 meeting, you said you were still looking for experts in opera planning?

There are only a few experts here. This has the disadvantage that there is no broad competition and the advantage that you are dealing with highly qualified specialists. We already have experts on the subject of monuments, gardens, statics, but now come the subjects, interior and exterior acoustics, theater and opera planning.

"The numbers that are circulating today are all unserious, because you can't make a cost estimate without planning."

One party has put forward a request to set a cost limit of 350 million. Is that realistic for you as a builder?

As a builder, we would like to see a cost limit defined in the bidding process, but at the moment we are not there yet. The figures that are circulating today are all dubious, because you can't make a cost estimate without planning. The figure of 750 million that the city once published has no basis that I can comprehend. In the meeting (Red's note on June 15), a comparison was made with the opera in Linz, which cost 350 million, but that was in 2009. Oslo was built in 2008 for 550 million euros, Helsinki had a rebuild for 200 million, and Copenhagen for 235 million, but that was 20 years ago. However, these are only the public figures.

"There is concern in parts of politics that such a large amount should not be made available."

There is concern in parts of the policy community that such a large amount of money should not be made available. And there are the concerns, historic preservation, garden maintenance, sustainability. In my opinion, the city has done everything right. It has done a careful location analysis, it has involved the public, and it attaches great importance to the fact that it will be an opera of the future, more than just an opera. An added value for the city community.

As project manager of the small tunnel under the Breuninger, I was personally against it at the beginning, because it already cost 300 million euros back then, in 2009. In the first 6 months, I changed my mind because local residents invested many times that amount. H&M has built new, Centrum has built two new buildings and the Kö-Bogen II has been built. If we build an attractive opera house on this site, it will probably also have a positive financial impact for the state capital of Düsseldorf.

What does it mean to you personally to be involved in this project? Is it your biggest construction project?

If I could say no, I would say no because it is a political task. As a technician, I would like to work in a non-political space. For me, it's a lighthouse project at the end of my professional career and a confirmation of the work I've done so far. The political dimension impresses me.

From the current point of view, you would never go back to a reconstruction. In the meeting, reference was made to Cologne.

The premises of the opera are not sufficient, the fire protection measures are no longer up to date. Only the special clientele, the artists, can work under such conditions. In Cologne, the council had decided to build a new opera house, but a referendum voted against it. The rescheduling that accompanied the construction took a very long time and was a financial fiasco. That's not the way to do it.

"I'm worried because we're also building schools, sports halls, kindergartens, and we always need a political solution there."

The "Opera of the Future" project could also have failed.

Ms. Koch did a great job defending the project. A few years ago, the Greens voted for the project and it was written that way in the coalition agreement. A year later, the world looks different. The coalition could not agree on the issue of the opera house of the future. I'm worried about that, because we're also building schools, sports halls, kindergartens, and we always need a political solution there.

What can you say about the construction period of 10 years?

We have worked out the figure seriously, but the 10 years are planned without a risk reserve and a buffer for eventualities. We assume that we can open in 2033, but that is very ambitious. One year for the bidding, 2 years for the competition, then the winner needs 2 to 3 years for his planning. Only then can we make the decision on execution and financing.

"We would make sure that the interim building can be resold or even stay in Düsseldorf."

Ms. Koch said in the June 15 meeting that there is a market for the sale of interim buildings? Has the location issue been clarified and what do you want to spend on it?

We now have to clarify the location question of the interim building, whether it is an existing building or a new building. Personally, I would welcome a new building. There has already been a site selection, but we want to take it from the top, and that will be clarified in the next 6 months. We would make sure that the interim building can be sold on or that it can even remain in Düsseldorf. An opera light. The interim will not bring the same number of plays; perhaps a combination of new venue and some existing venues. We would like to demolish the opera early and start civil engineering, but that can't be done until the interim solution is in place. Munich claims their interim venue cost 150 million euros, but I suspect it was more expensive. There are currently no used ones because China has bought them all up due to high demand.

"Düsseldorf is indeed the capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, and we should afford something, but appropriately."

Which opera house impresses you and where do you see the Düsseldorf Opera House in the future? Will it be the biggest, the most beautiful or the most innovative?

Every building has impressed me, but I'm excited about the competition. The results of the urban design competition were much better than we expected because the offices delivered more than they should have. I would like it to be the most innovative and successful. The biggest by no means, because I want to be economical. Düsseldorf is indeed the capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, and we should afford something, but appropriately. 

"But we require 100 percent German language skills."

The money you spend ultimately flows back into society. Does it benefit the companies based in NRW? International architectural firms were also involved in the competition.

We build for more than 100 million euros a year. The concern is always there, but the money goes to regional companies. It's different with the architects, because internationality is required here because it's a special product. But we demand 100 percent German language skills. International planners are desirable at this point.

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