Project Development is the working group that is developing the B-Side as part of the NRW funding program "Initiative ergreifen". The conversion of the old warehouse into a socio-cultural district center is being financed with 9.5 million euros from urban development funds from the state of NRW and from communal funds.

Our organizational structure has changed over the years in line with constantly changing requirements. For some years now, project development has consisted of the "Office Meeting" and "Building Committee" working groups, which meet weekly and represent B-Side in the "Steering Committee".

In February 2016, a young B-Side initiative successfully prevented the privatization of the Hill Speicher. This finally became clear when the Münster City Council decided to have the development of the old harbor building designed jointly by B-Side and the Münster Rowing Club of 1882 e.V. - instead of an investor. The politicians instructed the city administration to support the process and examine its doability.

Through the LAG Soziokultur, we contacted the "startklar a+b" office, which is commissioned by the NRW Ministry of Construction to oversee the state funding program "Initiative ergreifen" for civic urban development projects. In September 2016, the ministry confirmed B-Side's entry into the qualification phase of the funding program. Two months later, the city council approved the utilization concept jointly developed by B-Side and RVM and decided that Wirtschaftsförderung Münster GmbH should support the process on the city side. Wirtschaftsförderung then purchased the harbor property from Stadtwerke and would take on the role of building owner for B-Side in the future in partnership with Runderverein.

On the basis of the qualification decision, the "startklar a+b" office convened a "steering committee" that met regularly. The committee was tasked with facilitating coordination between all project participants and developing the B-Side until it was ready for funding.

The steering committee was made up of representatives from B-Side, the rowing club, the state of NRW (startklar a+b), the city administration (planning office and cultural office), the economic development agency, the LAG Soziokultur and the planning office assmann. The latter would be responsible for project management in the upcoming conversion and renovation process, as the architectural planning had to be put out to tender across Europe.

On the B-Side side, the weekly office meeting (usually late into the night) was established in response to the tasks ahead. This is where we organized our external representation and discussed our negotiations. To this day, the office meeting is the working group that deals with all matters relating to state funding and forms the interface to all stakeholders from the steering committee, as well as to politics and administration. However, we now meet at more humane times: Mondays from 4 - 6 pm.

Until 2018, project development was primarily concerned with supporting the bottom-up working groups around the building blocks of B-Side (cultural operations, workshop, gastronomy, social laboratory, etc.) in the spatial planning and business management concept. In order to qualify for state funding, B-Side GmbH had to submit a comprehensive project profile, which the B-Side collective developed over the course of three years. The project profile included a spatial and operational utilization concept, the program of all building blocks of the house, a business development plan, a fully developed sponsorship concept and an architectural design plan for the building project. After we had submitted the project profile, the state of NRW approved the funding application for the conversion of the old Hill warehouse into a socio-cultural center according to our concept in 2020.

With the funding approval, it was clear that the conversion of parts of the Hill Speicher into a cultural center would now become a reality! The architectural firm Heinrich Böll from Essen was awarded the contract for the architectural services at the end of December 2017 following the public tender. It will support B-Side and the rowing club from the planning stage through to completion of the joint construction project.

On the B-Side side, we set up a construction committee during the planning phase. This committee is responsible for creating our spatial infrastructure until the finished building is ready for use and acts as an interface with architects and planners. This is done in close coordination with the building owners' association consisting of the rowing club and the business development agency, as well as with the project management company Assmann.

The construction committee meets on Thursdays from 1 to 3 p.m. and is deeply involved in all the construction planning details. As decisions have to be made on a daily basis during the ongoing construction process, our members are also out and about every week in KO meetings, client meetings, planner meetings or on the construction site. Supervising the Hill-Speicher refurbishment is very time-consuming. In addition to the in-house construction work that the B-Side collective is taking on to save costs in the wake of the crisis-related increases in construction costs (painting work, final building cleaning, laying floors, etc.), the construction committee is also coordinating the public procurement of our building equipment. From teaspoons in the kitchen to trusses in the event hall, every item has to be put out to public tender.

If you would like to contact the project development team, please get in touch via sm.edis-b@ofni