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Page 1: Tour through the NRW parliament · Tour through the NRW parliament DER LANDTAG NORDRHEIN-WESTFALEN Foyer You are located here in the Citizens Hall (1)of the North Rhine-Westphalia

Tour through the NRW parl iament

D E R L A N D T A G N O R D R H E I N - W E S T FA L E N

Page 2: Tour through the NRW parliament · Tour through the NRW parliament DER LANDTAG NORDRHEIN-WESTFALEN Foyer You are located here in the Citizens Hall (1)of the North Rhine-Westphalia

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Foyer You are located here inthe Citizens Hall (1) of theNorth Rhine-Westphalia (NRW)state parliament.The parliamentbuilding was completed in1988, and is made centrallyaccessible through this light-flooded foyer. On the groundfloor there are conferencerooms of various sizes, eachgrouped around a separatesmall vestibule (2), which areused for special committees,working groups and parliamen-tary group meetings. Offices (3)for parliamentary groups and

parliamentary administration areadjacent. “Aurora” and “Ave”,the two Rauchbilder (‘smokepictures’) by Otto Piene (4), arehung over the corner to the leftof the entrance and thematicallysuit the hall’s transparent designin an outstanding manner. Theparliament’s visitor centre (6)was opened in 2016 and is loca-ted right next to the glass visi-tors’ lift (5). Guests, membersof parliament and staff can reacha restaurant and clubrooms viaa stone staircase (7).The library’sreading room (8) is also situa-

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ted on the Rhine River side andis visible from the foyer. Booksand periodicals on politics, law and contemporary historyare available for all interestedparties to read on site. In the espresso bar (9) abovethis there is an opportunity to observe the comings andgoings of politicians. Directlybehind the cloakroom, a smallcorridor leads to offices (10)which the parliament providesfor the Minister-President’s cabinet. Below the flight of

stairs on the right, the “Phoenix”(11) by Ewald Mataré (createdin 1949) commemorates thenew beginning of democracyafter Nazi dictatorship. The “Room of Silence” (12), a work created by Prof. GotthardGraubner, is diagonally opposi-te. Two “colour space bodies”of different sizes captivate eyes and thoughts. Here oneshould settle down and medi-tate. This special room is open to everyone – believersand non-believers.

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Free-standing staircase (on the left)You can reach the lobby via theflight of stairs (1) on the left. Toyour right around the library’sreading room you will see afountain designed by HeinzMack, a member of the “Zero”group of artists just like OttoPiene. The gently levelling,

water-filled steps arrayed at anangle of 150° embrace the buil-ding’s construction principles interms of form and material pro-perties. The large window faça-de to your left opens the parlia-ment to the harbour and theRhine. Built in a former harbourbasin (Berger Harbour), the par-liament building is part of the

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public park known as RheinparkBilk. Only protest marches mustkeep their distance – participantsmust comply with the moderate-ly measured no-protest zone. Thekinetic object “one up, one down– excentric” (2) by Americanartist George Rickey, which youcan see in the external installa-tion, forms part of the parliamentcomplex. Motion and dynamismcan be experienced even more clearly through this object than

through the fountain. The presi-dent of parliament’s receptionroom and study (3) are locatedin an exposed position, protru-ding 13 metres above the Rhine. The portraits (4) of former presidents of parliament hang onthe outer wall of the plenarychamber. They were generallyelected to office in the first con-stituting session of the legislativeperiod on a proposal by themajority party. In this legislativeperiod it is Carina Gödecke (SPD)who maintains the dignity andrights of parliament. She mana-ges parliamentary business,chairs the plenary sessions inalternation with the vice-presi-dents, and exercises the authorityof the house.

LobbyPassing the pictures (5) of well-known artists from NRW, yourpath leads you up to the entran-ce doors of the plenary chamber(6). As the site of political deba-tes and political decisions, this isthe heart of the parliamentarybuilding. Parliamentary groupmeetings and committee mee-tings are held in the rooms loca-ted around it (7, 8, 9, 10). As aspace of informal political discus-sions by members of parliamentamong each other or with repre-sentative of special interestgroups, the lobby is a place of

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bustling comings and goings,particularly on days when ple-nary sessions are being held.To the left of the plenarychamber doors you will see aspecial work of art. “Interfe-rences” is the title of GüntherUecker’s work (11), which con-sists of overlapping circles ofpaint and nails. The plenarychamber’s entrance doors areinscribed for the Hammelsprung-verfahren – a type of votingprocedure by foot, in whichmembers of parliament indica-te their vote by deliberatelyselecting the door with theinscription “Yes”, “No” or“Abstain” when entering theroom.

Plenary chamber The 237 members of parlia-ment meet here on about 30days a year for plenary ses-sions. They assemble to holddiscussions about draft billsand about current statepolitical topics, raise questionsand hold debates aboutgovernmental statements.Within the framework of thelegislative procedure, these ple-nary sessions primarily servethe purpose of informing thepublic; the plenary debate on adraft bill documents – in achronologically condensedform – the often months-long

process of opinion-forming incommittees and parliamentarygroups. Like all larger organisa-tions, the parliament also dele-gates the factual and detailedwork to smaller working units.However, the final decision isfundamentally reserved for theentirety of the members of par-liament in the plenary session.Attendance lists are placed onthe lecterns (to the left andright of the entrance) on dayswhen plenary sessions are held.The traditional Kirchenbank-ordnung (church pew arrange-ment) of German parliamentshas been replaced by a circularseating arrangement, and thebenches of the state govern-ment were lowered to the levelof the benches for the mem-bers of parliament. This equalstatus of benches for membersof parliament and governmentillustrates the equality of theconstitutional organs parliamentand government. However, thepresidium of the parliament sitson a raised level. Of the 237members of parliament, 98belong to the SPD, 68 to theCDU, 29 to the Alliance ‘90/The Greens, 22 to the FDP and18 to the Pirates. Two membersof parliament are independent.You can see the exact seatingarrangement on the large sea-ting plan at the entrance.

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Visitors galleryThe shed-roof construction overthe plenary chamber is not onlyof interest to technical enthusi-asts. The main load of the roofis borne by 12 trussed rafterswhich fan out radially from anode above the centre of the

room to concrete supports onthe periphery of the plenarychamber, and project varyingdistances (3.8 to 20.5 m)beyond the concrete supports,corresponding to the irregularroof layout. The fifth floor isreserved for the public. Two

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hundred seats on the visitors’ gal-lery are reserved for interestedcitizens. The technical centre ofthe plenary chamber is locatedbehind the glass wall. The galleryblock next to it is reserved forjournalists. Commentary for livetelevision broadcasts is provided

from semi-open capsules on thegallery for commentators.Theadjoining gallery block is reservedfor employees of ministries, repre-sentatives of churches and impor-tant social organisations as wellas the diplomatic corps.

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The parliament in figures

n SiteSite area 30 064 m2

Building area 10 630 m2

n BuildingMaximum width 105 mMaximum length 195 mHeight (6 levels) 21 mMain accommodation (offices etc.) 20 353 m2

Utility area (WCs, equipment) 2 239 m2

Functional areas (shafts etc.) 7 093 m2

Traffic space 40 713 m2

Enclosed space 355 425 m3

n RoomsOffices 603Conference rooms 25

n Plenary chamberSize 725 m2

Diameter 30 mSpace for 299 persons

n Visitors’ gallerySize 413 m2

Space for 336 persons

n Parking spaces 787 spaces

n Cost of construction € 163.0 millionAnnexe € 11.6 million

n Construction period 1982 - 1988Annexe 2009 - 2010Renovation of debating chamber Summer 2012

n Architects: Eller, Maier, Moser, Walter and Partner

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ImprintPublisher: Die Präsidentin des Landtags NRW (President of the NRW Parliament)Text and editor: Irmgard BirnPhotos: Bernd Schälte, Thomas SchneiderLayout: www.barbara-schmitz.dePrinting: GWN Gemeinnützige Werkstätten Neuss GmbHStatus as of: September 2016

Service for visitors – If you would like to know more about the function of parliament or would like to attend a plenary session,you can make an appointment with the Visitors’ Service:

Besucherdienst des Landtags Postfach 10 11 43, 40002 DüsseldorfTel.: 0211 / 884 - 2955 / - 2302Fax: 0211 / 884 - 3009E-mail: [email protected]