Participation

The qualification of the original Mauerpark

Mauerpark was a place of active citizen participation from the very beginning. Immediately after the fall of the Berlin Wall, citizens made the area their own by planting trees.

The great popularity of the park has since left clear traces on the original areas in the eastern part: The meadows, shrubs, infrastructure and paths are suffering from the pressure of use and some areas of the park are not barrier-free. Grün Berlin is therefore working together with the district of Pankow and the Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection on behalf of the state of Berlin to improve the original old part of Mauerpark. The participation of citizens and close dialogue with them has played a central role from the outset.

First of all, possible measures to improve the usability and quality of the Mauerpark were developed in a feasibility study, taking into account the results of the public participation. The study was carried out in close cooperation with the Senate Department for Urban Development and Housing, the Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection and the Pankow District Office. Through a combination of online and offline formats, on-site meetings and discussion events as well as the continuous involvement of all stakeholders, it has since been possible to enter into a lively dialogue on the development of Mauerpark.

A total of four public events for adults took place between March and June 2021. To kick off the process, the plans to upgrade the original Mauerpark were presented in a digital information event. Subsequently, three in-depth digital workshops on various sub-areas and key topics offered citizens the opportunity to engage in direct dialogue with those involved in the project. In the second half of 2021, the suggestions of children and young people on individual sub-areas were recorded in an on-site workshop and a walk-through and exploration of the Mauerpark area. The children used the #stadtsache mobile app to document their ideas directly. The suggestions collected by the children on their tour can be viewed in an interactive documentation on the Stadtsache initiative website.

The suggestions and findings from the participation formats will be incorporated step by step into further planning.

The expansion of Mauerpark

The contribution of the citizens was also of great importance in the creation of the expansion area. It was only thanks to their continuous efforts that the expansion could be realised on the entire area visible today. The "Bürgerwerkstatt Mauerpark-Fertigstellen" (citizens' workshop for the completion of Mauerpark) played a particularly important role here: Originally, parts of the expansion area were to be sold as building land. In addition, citizens were able to help shape the park in many areas. The playground, for example, was created in collaboration with children and young people from the surrounding neighbourhoods. The first citizens' workshop on park planning was launched by Grün Berlin in September 2010. Since then, more than 30 participation events have been organised, including further workshops, three large public events and on-site inspections. This has made it possible to integrate the main concerns of citizens into the planning process. These include, for example, the reduction of parking spaces for the flea market and the park-friendly integration of the existing "Kartoffelhalle" commercial building into the extension.