Gendarmenmarkt, Berlin-Mitte

The necessary renewal of the surface of the “Gendarmenmarkt” in Berlin was the reason for the development of a long-term concept for urban planning and design in the area. The foundation of this concept was an investigation into the origin and formation of the marketplace for historic preservation purposes. Even today the traces of previous eras are clearly visible which needs to be taken into account when restructuring the area. Bringing back the area to one of its original states would not live up its varying history as a parade ground, marketplace and formal garden. For this reason, elements from the different eras will be preserved in order to portray the history of the city in an authentic way in the future. A documentation of the planning process in digital and printed form has accompanied the research and restructuring of the “Gendarmenmarkt” in every planning phase. Highlights in the public dialogue were events at the “Schauspielhaus” where the different drafts were discussed, corrected and further developed.