Controversial high-rise project in Berlin: Creating facts after the election

The CDU and SPD are among the big losers in the House of Representatives election. But until a new Senate is formed, the old government will remain in office. The Senate Department for Urban Development could use this transition period to push through a controversial high-rise project in Rudolfkiez near the Warschauer Strasse Bridge.

According to a report in the Tagesspiegel, the Senate is aiming to have the plan ready for the 167-meter residential tower in the coming weeks before the Senate is reconstituted. In response to a taz request, the press office of the Senate Administration stated that it neither wanted to deny nor confirm the report. “Currently, no statement can be made as to when a plan will be declared ready in the ongoing development plan process,” says press spokeswoman Anett Seltz.

At 167 meters high, the high-rise, just a few 100 meters from the Amazon Tower, would be the second tallest skyscraper in Berlin after Neukölln's Estrel Tower. A total of 1,060 apartments will be built there, a third of which will be social housing.

The Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district initially rejected the investor's plans, among other things on the grounds that there was neither sufficient social infrastructure nor green spaces for such a dense residential development at the location. The district originally planned a four-story commercial space on the property in a coherent concept with the surrounding neighborhoods, the so-called Rudolfband.

But in April last year, the SPD-led Senate Department for Urban Development (SenStadt) took over planning authority and pushed forward the development according to the investor's ideas. The Senate administration uses an accelerated development plan process. If the planning stage is reached, the investor can submit a building application and begin work.

Nevertheless, there are still unanswered questions. The Federal Railway Authority (EBA) reported concerns back in May. For the project, part of the adjacent railway area would have to be converted into public road land. It was only in July that the Senate administration applied to the authority to exempt the areas. “A time forecast for the completion of the exemption process is currently not possible,” says a spokeswoman for the EBA.

According to Tagesspiegel, current Finance Senator Stefan Evers (CDU) tried to put pressure on the Federal Railway Authority through contacts in the Federal Ministry of Transport in the hope that the audit would be in favor of the investor.

The project sponsor Atrium Development donated the sum of 20,000 euros to the CDU during the 2023 election campaign. Both the CDU and the company denied a connection between the high-rise project and the donation.

Headwind for the Senate administration also comes from its own party colleagues. At the last meeting of the construction committee at the end of August, SPD MP Mathias Schulz (SPD) expressed strong doubts about the feasibility of the project and that he saw “no majority” for the project within the coalition.

Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg's construction councilor Florian Schmidt (Greens) warns the outgoing Senate not to push through the controversial high-rise project on Rudolfstrasse before the new government is formed. “That would be a scandal,” says Schmidt to the taz. The construction city council has considerable concerns about the legality of the procedure. "The question arises as to whether the proceedings can only be ended or canceled in return for compensation. Giving this mortgage to a new government is irresponsible," says Schmidt.

Schmidt describes the high-rise as a “pure political favor project” and the new coalition parties should stop the project.