Mediaspree is one of the largest property investment projects in Berlin. It aims to establish telecommunication and media companies along a section of the banks of the river Spree as well as to implement an urban renewal of the surrounding area. So far, for the most part, unused or temporarily occupied real estate is to be converted into office buildings, lofts, hotels, and other new structures.
The plans date predominantly from the 1990s, but only a part of them was implemented due to unfavorable economic circumstances at the time. Promoters saw in this project a great opportunity for the former East Berlin, while critics saw the selling-out of the area's most valuable properties. The following criteria were defined for sustainable location development: Public access to the riverfront, Buildings with ground-floor public areas, A mixture of large-scale and small-scale use, Ambitious architectural concepts, The integration of art and media.mediaspree.de/Zielrichtung at archive.org
Project management There is no specific institution that centrally manages and markets the project; Mediaspree is merely a label. The planning for individual building projects lies with property owners, investors, and the borough (in particular, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg).
The association Regionalmanagement mediaspree e.V. (originally, media spree Berlin GmbH) was founded in May 2004 as a contact point for investors and businesses, which lasted until December 2008.
It arose from a private sector initiative as a consortium of different interest groups: investors from the building and construction industry, property owners that, after the Wende (i.e., the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany), had acquired the previously unused land around the path of the Berlin Wall, as well as representatives from the Senate, Borough, and Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK: Industrie- und Handelskammer). The borough of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg was not in charge, but rather a partner in the context of a Public-Private Partnership. Association membership was limited to the owners, renters and leaseholders of land or buildings in the Spree area. Mediaspree e.V. had 21 members in 2008, including the Anschutz Entertainment Group, Behala (a dock and storage company), Berlin's waste management agency, Deutsche Post Property Development, GASAG, IVG Real Estate and TLG Real Estate.mediaspree.de/Mitglieder at archive.org
This association considered its mission to be: to act as a broker for the corresponding spaces and properties of the Spree-zone; to advise resident businesses as well as those interested in relocating there; to develop contacts between owners, agencies and sponsors; and to take steps toward marketing and image-building.Malah Helman: Mediaspree und der neoliberale Stadtumbau in abriss-berlin.de, 26. Januar 2007
After public sponsorship ran out, Mediaspree e.V. was dissolved on 31 December 2008. Its duties are now fulfilled by a property association, recently constituted, which nonetheless still operates under the name Mediaspree.
Project Site
The project extends along a , space on both sides of the Spree riverfront, on the borders of four districts: Mitte, Friedrichshain, Kreuzberg und Alt-Treptow. It is bordered to the west by , to the north by the railway tracks of the Berlin S-Bahn (rapid transit trains), to the east by , and to the south by two streets (Schlesischen Straße and Köpenicker Straße). The Spree is about wide along this section and the riverfront runs relatively straight. The river is cross-cut by three bridges within the Mediaspree zone: , and Oberbaumbrücke. Along with large, undeveloped lots one can find numerous industrial and trade buildings from the 19th and 20th centuries, such as the (egg cold-storage warehouse) on the (East Harbor) and the (ice factory), as well as various new buildings and the East Side Gallery. The area is easily accessible by public transit as well as regional and long-distance trains.
History In the 19th and early 20th centuries, this area was primarily occupied by industry and trade. Many of the buildings still standing date from this period and are characteristic of the architecture of that era. A few of these are now protected by the Denkmalschutz (de) designation; that is, they are listed as historical monuments. Of particular importance for the region before World War II were the East Harbor, Osthafen (de), opened in 1913 with extensive storage facilities for grains and other goods, as well as the Eierkühlhaus (egg cold-storage warehouse) and the Eisfabrik (ice factory).
Between 1939 and 1945, the premises were primarily used by the Wehrmacht (German Armed Forces). The harbor served as a shipping center for goods, and tanks and other munitions were serviced in the former bus garage and present-day event space Arena Berlin (de) in Treptower Park. More than 150 foreign workers and prisoners of war worked on the harbor's premises.
Large portions of the buildings were destroyed after the war. Until 1947, large sites were seized and used by the Soviets, transportable material was stripped and shipped to the Soviet Union as a form of reparation.
During the time of Cold War, this area lay in the middle of the border zone between East- and West-Berlin, which made commercial development impossible. On the GDR side, portions of the industrial buildings were transformed into watchtowers for border security. The Berlin Wall ran along the northern bank of the Spree, parallel to the river that marked the official border. On the West-Berlin side, south of the Spree and bordering on Kreuzberg, stood various alternative projects.
The restructuring of the area after the Wende began slowly. An approximately 1.3 km (0.8 mi) long section of the wall was not torn down, but rather designed and painted by artists since 1990 as the East Side Gallery, the longest open-air gallery in the world. In 1998, the Ostbahnhof train station began renovations, reopening in 2000. Many unused properties were bought up by investors. One decisive development began in 2002 with the passage of a land development plan through the Berlin Senate and the advancement of the "Mediaspree" project.
Overview Among the first development projects to be completed in the Mediaspree-region after the fall of the Berlin Wall were: the Treptowers (de), the ver.di headquarters at the Schillingbrücke bridge, as well as the renovation of the Eierkühlhaus into the German headquarters for Universal Music, which received 10 Million Euros worth of sponsorship funding from the Senate and was completed in the middle of 2002. In early 2004, there followed the similarly subsidized settlement of MTV Networks Germany in a former warehouse at Osthafen. VIVA and VIVA Plus followed in 2005, due to their acquisition by MTV.Information about the "Mediaspree" in the Media Guide Berlin-Brandenburg . Messetreff.com. Retrieved on 30 May 2011. The O2 World arena was constructed by the Anschutz Entertainment Group on the grounds of the former Ostgüterbahnhof (de) (which was the site of the legendary nightclub Ostgut from 1998 to 2003, predecessor to Berghain) and opened on 10 September 2008, accompanied by protests.Wikinews: Protest and Chaos at the Opening of O2 World (11. September 2008), in German
Other building and renovation projects in the Mediaspree-region that have since been completed include the EnergieForum Berlin, the Industriepalast (Industry Palace) at Warschauer Straße, the European Shared Service Center of BASF in Oberbaum-City, the Fernsehwerft (TV-Wharf), the cleaning of the Viktoria-Mühle (Victoria Mill), the Wissinger Höfe (Wissinger Courtyards), the former army bakery and the Josetti-Höfe (Josetti Courtyards). In contrast, as-yet unfinished projects include Spree Urban and Spreeport, the Columbus-Haus, the development of the area around Postbahnhof (the postal train station, de), the Anschutz site, BSR's Quartier in Orange, the prospective fashion house Labels 2, a planned yacht harbor, the Neuen Spreespeicher ("New" Granary on the Spree), and the renovation of the Eisfabrik (de).Berlin liegt an der Spree Informational video about the Mediaspree at google.com, in German
For recreational purposes, Mediaspree has planned a 10m (33 ft) wider riverfront strip and a "Park on the Spree," as well as small pocket parks between the Spree and Stralauer Allee around the East Side Gallery. Furthermore, footpaths and bicycle paths are slated to be built on both sides of the river. The reconstruction of the destroyed Brommybrücke bridge, intended to alleviate the forecasted increase in traffic volume, was abandoned after further protests; instead, only a temporary "artistic footbridge" was supposed to be built. It was not built.
Stadtumbau West Mediaspree is associated with the Senate project Stadtumbau West ("City-Renovation West", de), which calls not only for the restructuring of the Kreuzberg riverfront, but also for the development of the Neukölln-Südring, Schöneberg-Südkreuz and Tiergarten-Nordring/Heidestraße areas. With this project, both the federal government and the state of Berlin hope to counteract the negative consequences of economic and demographic change by fostering "private investment and sustainable workplaces."Information on the development and aid program Stadtumbau Ost and West , by the Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development, in German
Completed Projects Descriptions are largely based on the descriptions posted on the former mediaspree.de websiteSite descriptions by mediaspree.de, at archive.org
Northern Spree Riverfront from West to East
Fortress Multi Service Center
Built by Fortress Immobilien AG Meerbusch on Holzmarktstraße 1–9, directly next to the Jannowitzbrücke station, this Multi-Service-Center included a Tamoil gas station, a Burger King with "drive-in", a Lidl discount supermarket and offices. The investment volume came to 8.3 Million Euros. This ensemble was torn down at the end of 2018.
Trias
The Trias on Holzmarktstraße 15–17 was built between 1994 and 1996 and houses the headquarters of the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG) since August 2008. The complex is composed of three 13-floor office towers connected by a seven-floor concourse.
Ibis Hotel This seven-floor building complex at the Schillingbrücke bridge was completed in the year 2000 and consists of three parts, in which commercial spaces, 20 apartments and the 242-room "Hotel Ibis Berlin City Ost" are located.
EnergieForum Berlin The structure at Stralauer Platz 33/34 was erected in 1906–1908 and housed the Zentralmagazin der städtischen Gaswerke (central depot for the municipal gasworks). In 2002, it was converted into the EnergieForum Berlin, with a focus on renewable energy and energy efficiency. The building was also expanded through new construction; the original building, protected as a historical monument, is connected to two modern wings by a glass atrium. The businesses and institutions that reside in the EnergieForum are "green energy" companies that have established themselves in the fields of environmentally friendly and renewable energy as well as energy efficiency.
East-Side-Park
The East-Side-Park is situated between the East Side Gallery and the Spree. Like the planned "Park on the Spree" (see below), it was commissioned by the district authority of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and designed by the landscape architectural firm Häfner/Jiménez. In the middle of the park is the so-called "Boat Landing Plaza," a boat landing built for the O2 World complex. The surface area of the park covers approximately and was under construction from August 2006 to early 2009. The construction costs ran to 816,000 Euros.