The city of Leipzig will not award its prestigious architecture prize in 2025, marking a significant departure from a tradition that has recognized outstanding construction projects for over two decades. The Building Department confirmed the cancellation in response to inquiries, citing cost-cutting measures as the primary reason for eliminating the award program that has been presented biennially since 1999.
The Leipzig Architecture Prize was originally established by city council resolution and served as an important tool for promoting contemporary architecture in the region. The award recognized not only new buildings, renovations, and additions to existing structures, but also outdoor spaces and park designs that demonstrated exceptional architectural merit. Among the first recipients in 1999 were the Gallery for Contemporary Art, the distinctive glass KPMG building on Münzgasse, and the new trade fair grounds in northern Leipzig.
The most recent edition of the prize in 2023 saw unprecedented recognition, with an independent jury awarding the undotted honor to three municipal projects simultaneously. This historic hat trick went to a new kindergarten on Tarostraße, an outdoor skate facility at the Heizhaus in Grünau, and the wooden extension building of the Apollonia-von-Wiedebach School in Connewitz. The 2023 competition attracted a total of 29 submissions representing diverse architectural styles and project types, from new construction and renovations to green spaces.
According to the Building Department, the decision to cancel this year's prize and its accompanying exhibition was made several months ago purely for financial reasons. The city traditionally allocated a budget in the low five-figure range to cover the organization of the architecture prize, including costs for jury sessions and related events. The exact future of the program remains uncertain, with officials stating that it has not yet been definitively determined whether or how the initiative will continue.
The prize was administered by the City Planning Office, where the Leipzig Architecture Prize secretariat was housed under the supervision of Heide Luckmann and David Pfeil, who will now be reassigned to other duties on a partial basis. While the city managed the award, the actual organization has been handled since 1999 by the Office for Urban Projects on behalf of the municipality.
Despite the cancellation, a scheduled event will still take place on Tuesday, November 18, at 6 p.m. in the Skylight Hall of the City Library. However, instead of announcing the 2025 winners as originally planned, the gathering will feature a discussion panel on the topic of "Building Culture in Times of Crisis." The competition was previously disrupted once before due to the COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrating that external factors have occasionally affected the award's regular schedule.
The cancellation notably does not affect the Hieronymus Lotter Prize for Monument Preservation, which is awarded by the Leipzig Cultural Foundation every two years. This separate honor has traditionally alternated with the city's architecture prize, ensuring continuous recognition for different aspects of the built environment in Leipzig. The preservation prize will continue its regular cycle, maintaining at least one form of architectural recognition in the city despite the current budget constraints affecting the municipal architecture award.
