“Where there is a school, the city grows”: Dirk Tillmann and Falk Saalbach

School construction as an urban building block

When urban development is discussed, the focus is often on transport, housing, and open spaces. However, schools are rarely at the center of these debates. Yet hardly any other public building type has a comparable relevance for the social fabric of a neighborhood. Both are Senior Associate Partners at RKW Architektur + and, in their presentation at the SCHULBAU Salon & Messe Munich 2025, they will address the question of how educational buildings can be conceived and built as long-term catalysts for vibrant, resilient districts.

At the center of their work are schools as semi-public spaces—places that have an impact beyond their actual educational mandate. In their presentation titled “Where there is a school, the city grows,” Dirk Tillmann and Falk Saalbach discuss specific projects where schools were not planned in isolation, but as integrative components of everyday urban life. They present architectural and urban planning concepts geared towards long-term usability, social mixing, and communal living.

A particular focus is on how multi-purpose uses can be anchored in school buildings without compromising the pedagogical function. The designs presented deliberately draw on different scales: from the classroom to the facility as a whole, and into the adjacent urban spaces. It is about transitions and interfaces, permeability, visual connections, and orientation.

Dirk Tillmann has been with RKW Architektur + for many years and, as an experienced project manager, is responsible for a variety of complex building projects. Falk Saalbach heads the firm’s Leipzig office. With a Master’s degree from ETH Zurich and professional experience in Stockholm, Vienna, and Zurich, he brings an internationally influenced perspective to educational buildings. In Leipzig, he was most recently responsible for the planning of the new Zentrum-Nord Gymnasium with a triple sports hall—a project that exemplifies the integration of school, neighborhood, and public space.