Cities need more SUVs, affirms Wulf Kramer, managing partner of CITY DECKS (Livable Cities GmbH), which enlivens the grayness of cities with its bench/tree street furniture. Wait, what? But Kramer clarifies that the SUVs he means are not lumbering cars, but “social urban values,” dedicated to fostering green areas and public discourse in pedestrian zones and open spaces. CITY DECKS has more to offer than mere street furniture; the company unlocks opportunities to break up the deserts of asphalt and paving that are our streets with no need to break out the heavy diggers. The wooden planters become co-players along the journey to a greener, more livable environment. The idea was a perfect fit for this year’s Munich Creative Business Week and its motto of “How to Co-Create with Nature.”
New seating landscapes appeared on Munich’s Rindermarkt square in front of the richly embellished Ruffinihaus. Comprising a total of five modules from various product series, they were welcomed and accepted immediately. “They have now been dismantled and rented to other towns and cities,” says Wulf Kramer, who is enthusiastic about his company’s partnership with the mcbw. The issue, he summarizes, is to create cities that are more livable – and to make the journey together.
Growing ideas
More and more municipalities are adopting the idea of oases of green to replace gray asphalt. The planter benches, incorporating platforms, tables, and play areas, can now be found in almost 200 towns. Founded in 2020, CITY DECKS still likes to call itself a start-up despite now employing over 20 people in its offices and workshop. But what was the inspiration for these mobile seats with their own trees, providing shade and encouraging personal interaction? The two founders, architects Robin Woll and Wulf Kramer, have engaged with “activating and ‘attractivating’ public spaces” for over ten years. Starting with simple pop-ups and temporary interventions, they developed the idea of launching a dedicated project for activities of this kind. The first parklet series, named AUSGEPARKT, immediately received an innovation award in 2019. The company CITY DECKS was founded in the following spring. Their innovation was to create “a scalable product solution enabling spaces to be transformed without the need for individual planning.” The first customer at the end of 2020 was Zukunftsnetz NRW, a future-facing organization in North Rhine-Westphalia. Since then, CITY DECKS have been set up in Berlin, Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Wiesbaden, Frankfurt, Augsburg, and of course Munich.
CITY DECKS unlocks opportunities to break up the deserts of asphalt and paving that are our streets with no need to break out the heavy diggers.
Greenery for hire
The idea has long expanded from a single modular series The best-selling DRAUFGESETZT is a modular series with benches, planters and small tables, inviting passers-by to take a spontaneous break, chat to friends, or just chill. The flexible furniture is as much at home on the street as it is in foyers and roof terraces. A real all-round talent. “We have collaborated with UEFA to set up some of our parklets in Stuttgart during the Euros,” explains Wulf Kramer. Superblocks and “summer streets” are on the rise, “and the opportunity to hire our street furniture is proving extremely popular.” The story of CITY DECKS has many more chapters ahead. European cities have long been in the company’s focus – Paris, Vienna, Copenhagen. And they also see opportunities for fine-tuning the products to make them “more efficient, more innovative, more circular.” These are sunny prospects for summer cities, transforming them into vast open-air living-rooms as playgrounds for us all.