industrial 2 apartment?

[hinterhaus]

chitchat + predesign

i recently stumbled across this place around the corner from where i live. (berlin) a historic industrial building with a SSE facade overlooking a park and a cemetery.
most loftbuildings here would be located in denser areas. often they form a sequence of yards - and rarely offer much of a view. this one is different.
5 of the 6 floors are available for rent so we went to take a look and kind of fell in love with it. huge floorspace, magnificent view, downtownish location. very nice. it seems thinkbuild's friends got infected with the idea too. :)

the floorplan was sent to me and i've been wrecking my head since about how to divide that space. my conclusion so far - close to impossible. :bang head

here's a predesign - idea is to divide a 360m2 floor into two apartments of ~170m2 each. let me know what you think if you like.
drawbacks are the main entrance door offset, 2 supporting columns in the middle of the room, location of main drains (2 with max. 6m distance to appliances), fixed window positions with no additional windows allowed. skylights are an option for the top floor.
the building is denkmalgeschützt - protected cultural/historical heritage.
not sure about the correct term.

is loft living/working a desirable option where you live and is it affordable?
do you live or work in one? what would be a typical floorplan?

[hinterhaus]

for Google Earth

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partitions plan 1

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the plan sets a 'public' work/guest area next to the main entrance. (where the cross-arrows point in 4 directions)
work/guest is separate from the main space but with a sliding door connection to it.
kitchen and dining area are in the center - private rooms in the back.
problem is, this way the bedroom will have no windows except the
glass door connection to the main living area. (an old loft window)
would that be bearable or would we feel like buried in a cave?
what about skylights and rain and noise?

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first floor east

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first floor east - view SSE

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first floor east - view NNW

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first floor east - view NW

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first floor east - view W

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first floor west - view NE

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fifth floor west - view east

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building - view from SE

[WilsonMetry]

hinter,
Wow, what a great space. I can see why you fell in love with it. Good proportions and good light (many windows).

Loft living is very desirable here but somewhat limited. (unless you count the whole Pearl District neighborhood that is now full of brand new buildings full of brand new "lofts"- not really lofts, just tiny apartments):o

I think most lofts (like this one) are appreciated because of their openness. There are very very few partitions and even fewer rooms The space is left open and so that the space and the light are shared because of the kinds of problems you are experiencing: windows limited to just one wall, oddly placed access to entrance, centralized plumbing, etc.

I think the key is to not fight these limitations but to let them shape the space and appreciate that for what it makes.

I'll look at your skippy and see if I can draw something that illuminates these ideas.

[BruceWalker]

I haven't looked at your skippy - but could you post an image of the unaltered floor plan with just walls, columns, stairs etc shown. It might allow people to come up with some different ideas.

Just a thought.

[hinterhaus]

status quo floorplan 5th floor
the thin walls are existing partitions. the whole 5th floor was an architect's office before.

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same image (higher res jpg 1500x950)