Since 2007, the state of Berlin has involved citizens in an open process in the design of the “Tempelhofer Feld” – the former airport site. A new residential quarter was planned on the west side of the large open space. In addition to the public participation required by the building code, a special participatory element was to be used within the framework of this planning: the development of a citizens’ report. For this purpose, the nexus Institute organised and moderated planning cells for the new quarter at Tempelhofer Damm on behalf of the Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment. In addition to the focus on residential uses with a high proportion of affordable housing, office and service facilities as well as commercial areas for special uses were to be developed. The construction of the Central and Regional Library is also planned in this quarter. A modern, urban residential quarter should thus have been created on the edge of Tempelhofer Feld, in which at least 50 per cent of the flats were intended for middle and lower income groups. Within the planning cells, the following aspects were discussed, among others:

  • Overview of the current planning
  • Target groups and structural character of the neighbourhood
  • Various uses in the Tempelhofer Damm quarter
  • Designing the neighbourhood of housing and the Central and Regional Library
  • Integration of the neighbourhood into the urban environment
  • Transport and accessibility

About 75 citizens of Berlin were selected in a random procedure. In three planning cells, each with 25 people, they developed their own recommendations and ideas for the Tempelhofer Damm neighbourhood over two days. The results of the process were summarised in a citizens’ report that was handed over to the Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment in April 2014.

Duration: 09/2013 – 02/2014
Client: Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung und Umwelt
Team: Dr. Angela Jain, Nicolas Bach, Ansgar Düben

Download Citizens’ Panel