The Hermann-Schafft-Haus on Wilhelmshöher Allee in Kassel is considered an important example of postwar modernism. It was built in 1960 by Kassel’s Chief Architect Werner Noell and today serves, among other things, as the headquarters of the Adult Education Center (VHS). The building is a cultural monument and is protected as such. It consists of a single-story auditorium building, a four-story main building (basement, ground floor, first and second floors) with classrooms, and a single-story access and connecting building.

As part of the construction project “Renovation and Refurbishment of the Kassel District Office” the single-story sections connecting the Hermann-Schafft-Haus to the main VHS building to its west were demolished in 2002; the Hermann-Schafft-Haus was thus freed from these connecting structures. In 2008, as part of a fire safety renovation, the wall, ceiling, and floor coverings—including interior doors—in the main building and auditorium building were replaced. Key design elements such as door handles and stair railings were carefully restored to preserve their historic charm.

The missing steel windows were replaced with aluminum windows; in addition to installing a composite thermal insulation system on the southeast side, thermal bridge insulation was applied to the reinforced concrete pilasters. In doing so, the delicate appearance of the 1960s facades was preserved as much as possible: The window profiles were replicated and fitted with gold-colored anodized glazing beads. The colored glass blocks in the stairwell were faithfully reproduced.