From Hildburg Bruns
The fallow area of the main fire station, which was demolished long ago, is erased from Potsdam’s city map. Because the building permit for a new creative district has finally been issued.
Behind the tower of the half-finished garrison church, seven buildings with offices, studios, rehearsal rooms for musicians and a dance school, shops, cafés, restaurants and apartments are growing around one square on a total area of 25,000 square meters. A 120 million euro project!
Another open question: Will the neighboring prefabricated building with the data center be demolished or not? Investor Christopher Weiß (48, Glockenweiß) has actually reserved 4,300 square meters in his new building complex as a replacement, about 15 percent of the area. “The situation is confused,” he told the BZ on Friday. Perhaps the GDR building will also be renovated and continue to operate.
Construction of the first section of the quarter is scheduled to start in June: the long stable should be finished in autumn 2024. Today, only the magnificent portal on Werner-Seelenbinder-Straße remains from the former, burned-down parade stables (167 meters long, 23 meters wide) – the investor still has to buy it from the Castle Foundation.
All building materials used in the project should be reusable. “The quarter will bring a breath of fresh air to Potsdam’s inner city, which has so far been revitalized in a more traditional way,” Weiss is a convinced investor.
The current status
The reconstruction of the tower of the garrison church is half finished, the nave probably remains an unfulfilled dream of the future. The listed portal in the Werner-Seelenbinder-Halle will be integrated into the new building.
The future of the data center in the GDR prefabricated building is open. It will be renovated or demolished. Meanwhile, the long stable is being rebuilt in its old dimensions. The building was erected in 1734 and burned down in World War II.
Commercial space will remain in the adjacent buildings. The corrugated roof has surrounding green balconies.
Finally, there is a complex called the Townhouse. It houses apartments on the upper floors.