The World Heritage Centre UNESCO
7, place de Fontenoy

75352 Paris 07 SP,
France

Re: World Heritage List No.: 3, the Cathedral of Aix-la-Chapelle

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have been requested by a civic action group in Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle)/the Federal Republic of Germany to draw your kind attention to a building project by the city of Aachen which in our opinion will lastingly damage the world heritage rating of the cathedral in Aix-la-Chapelle. The Cathedral of Aix-la-Chapelle (Aachen) was listed in your World Heritage List No. 3 on the 3rd of April 1978. The relevant ICOMOS recommendations were based on the criteria I, II, IV and VI.

The majority of the City Council of Aachen voted last week, on the 16th of August 2006 for a motion brought forward by the Lord Mayor of Aachen, Dr. Jürgen Linden in favour of building a glass-steel edifice in the direct neighbourhood of the Cathedral. Contrary to the City Council approximately 65 % of the population are strongly opposed to this project which you will find depicted in the attached print material.

Most of the people opposing this project are afraid that the existing ensemble will suffer architecturally beyond recognition. Today there is an open place, the Katschhof, between the Historic City Hall built from 1330-1349 and the Cathedral. Looking at the Cathedral from the City Hall one will see on the right the Cathedral choir school and attached to the City Hall a historically styled administrative building which was rebuilt after the II WW. On the left you see a number of traditional private houses.

The administrative building will completely be demolished to make place for the glass-steel building which will have a volume bigger than the Cathedral.