as the building was situated in the immediate neighbourhood of the town hall, it was decided to launch an architectural competition to attract bids for its reconstruction from throughout germany. the competition was won by the young bremen architect rudolf jacobs. in accordance with his designs, it was reconstructed between 1909 and 1911 as a four-storey building with a saddle roof on the marktplatz which at that time was called kaiser-wilhelm-platz. jacobs succeeded in creating a building which attracted expert attention. the building is an important component of the area's development given its relationship to the marktplatz itself as well as to unser-lieben-frauen-kirchhof, the cemetery located opposite.