This grass sofa is part of the new design of Graefestrasse in Kreuzberg Photo: Olaf Selchow
By Isabel Pancake
Bullerbü? Teletubbie Land? Or maybe a field? As a reminder: 80 parking spaces had to be made way in Kreuzberg’s Graefekiez. Instead, this is what it looks like now in place.
Someone tried to plant beds. So far there has been little success here. Who is responsible for this wasteland? In response to a BZ request, the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district office wrote: “The planting beds in the Graefekiez are maintained by citizens. Permission agreements were concluded for this purpose.”
Plain text: Berliners have to take care of PUBLIC green spaces PRIVATELY!
There are these new wooden terraces on Böckhstrasse. Some of them have already been smeared or filled with rubbish Photo: Olaf Selchow
The “permitting agreement” states that the district office is dependent on the commitment of citizens “as the public capacity is not sufficient to maintain aesthetically pleasing unsealed areas in the street area”. Aesthetically pleasing?
The green spaces are already pretty run down Photo: Olaf Selchow
Among other things, a grass sofa currently decorates Graefestrasse, small scraps of turf lie in the beds, wooden posts are stuck all over the place. Some of the tiny picket fences – which the district office itself apparently put up – have already fallen over. “If someone thinks it’s nice, I don’t know,” said a resident.
CDU MP Timur Husein (42) is also aghast: “Is that a dog toilet? The unsealing alone cost almost 150,000 euros. The money would have been better spent on cleaning or replanting existing parks.”
Thomas Behrens (56), bricklayer from Pankow: “This is brand new and the fence is already broken, it will only last until tomorrow. And later it becomes a garbage dump! They all come from the village to the city and want to live here like in the village. Where should I park? There are no parking zones everywhere. As a tradesman, I can hardly ride a cargo bike.” Photo: Olaf Selchow
Even more money comes from the district: a one-off amount of 4,000 euros, which can be spent on work equipment. Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg has given up complete responsibility for planting, care, watering and waste disposal. Volunteers have to take care of that now.