Mauerpark

"The Mauerpark is a typical place of interest in Berlin. There is neither a wall here nor a park." In this statement, Berlin author Wladimir Kaminer exaggerates and yet perfectly describes the impression that many visitors have. Lush green surely cannot be found everywhere but one can find people who enjoy a feeling of freedom. This is due to the Berlin lifestyle and the special history of the place. After all, this used to be the site of the deadly Berlin Wall that prevented people from fleeing from East to West for almost three decades.

The horrors of the Wall finally ended in 1989. While large parts of the border strip used to be privately owned, the section between Bernauer Straße and the S-Bahn ring belonged to the state of Berlin. Soon the neighbouring residents took over the area and planted trees. In October 1990, the Berlin parliament decided to create new green spaces on the strip. In this context, a “green bridge” was to be developed between the West Berlin district of Wedding and the East Berlin district of Prenzlauer Berg. But how large was the park going to be? Should it include the entire area of the former freight train station that used to be located here? Or would apartment buildings be constructed as well? In the following decades, these questions characterised the dispute among local politicians, the senate, investors and citizens’ initiatives.

When the district of Berlin-Mitte granted a public petition for "100% Mauerpark" in 2015, the Berlin Senate prevented its execution and took over the project. It approved – to the outrage of the citizens’ initiative – the construction of 700 apartments in the northern part of the area. In turn, the owner of the area, a private real estate company, left several hectares to the city for the development of the park. With the completed expansion in 2020, the Mauerpark now comprises 13 hectares, thus an area the size of 18 football fields. This additional space helps the worn-out patches of grass of the old park to finally recover.

On warm weekends, this park is where people from all around the world meet, enjoy the sun, grill, visit the flea-market or listen to musicians. Many neighbouring residents, however, are often bothered by the bands, drummers and singers who get together spontaneously. Again, and again, the police have to stop by and keep things calm.  The park moreover suffers from the crowds of visitors and the rubbish that is frequently left behind. Despite such problems, however, there are few places where the shadows of the past have been so thoroughly overcome as in the Mauerpark.