Museum für sächsische Fahrzeuge Chemnitz e.V.

Description

On the edge of the Kapellenberg on Zwickauer Straße stand the Stern-Garagen, also called Garagenhof Chemnitz; the six-storey building dating from 1928 shapes the urban fabric and is part of the automotive heritage of the interwar period. Alongside comparable facilities in Halle (Großgarage Süd, 1929) and Berlin (Kant-Garagenpalast, 1930), it is one of the significant preserved multi-storey garages in Germany.

The creation of the garage complex was a response to the rapidly growing traffic volumes of the 1920s and the shortage of inner-city parking spaces. A centrally located plot on the heavily trafficked Zwickauer Straße near the Kaßberg residential area was chosen; beforehand there were significant objections from neighbouring businesses concerned about potential loss of light. Despite these protests, the project received approval in 1928 and was completed in October of the same year. The façade design with partial glazing and the objective formal language correspond to the style of New Objectivity.

The original garage operation ended in 1940/41; during World War II the Kriegsmarine used the building as storage, and bomb hits in February and March 1945 caused only minor damage. In the postwar decades the building continued to serve as storage space; the first floor was used by a driver service as a garage and workshop until the 1980s, for which a ramp was installed.

After reunification the property returned to its former owners; a planned wholesale project was not realised. Since 2008 the ground floor has housed the Museum for Saxon Vehicles. On the middle storeys a furniture shop uses the former parking boxes as furnished rooms in its exhibition.

The architecture and usage concept are typical for large garages of the period: six storeys with around 300 parking boxes, approximately 120 of which could be locked. Three car lifts transported vehicles to the upper floors; they measure approximately 2.60 m in width and almost 6 m in depth and carry up to three tonnes; these lifts have been preserved to this day. Separate passenger lifts and staircases, a service-oriented staff and comprehensive service offerings — from repair and paintwork to lubrication services and cleaning — were aimed primarily at the affluent citizenry. The partially glazed rear façade and roof provided unusually good lighting and ventilation for vehicle storage for the time.