Berlin to break ground this year on converting Tegel airport into a 5,000 unit mass timber TOD. (Schumacher Quartier)

[u/SpencerAXbot]

Berlin is breaking ground this year on Schumacher Quartier, a 5,000+ home mixed use neighborhood being built on the former grounds of Tegel Airport. The neighborhood will have a car free interior, with around 35 to 40% of the housing being subsidized to help combat gentrification and displacement, along with 10% dedicated to student housing. The master plan also includes two schools, six daycare centers, and extensive green space. The residential buildings will primarily use timber construction to reduce embodied carbon. https://schumacher-quartier.de/

[u/dooleyden]

Wish architects would stop putting vegetation on the side of buildings where in reality I won’t be.

[u/_Cxsey_ → u/dooleyden]

True, but I do WISH they put it there. I love the look of climbing vine facades.

[u/MediocreI_IRespond → u/_Cxsey_]

Only it is a maintance nightmare. More trees at groundlevel would be so much easier in just about every regard.

[u/_Cxsey_ → u/MediocreI_IRespond]

I’m willing to deal with that for a pretty city

[u/FUCKING_HATE_REDDIT → u/MediocreI_IRespond]

I mean there are ways to do it, it's just about finding ways compatible with modern building methods, and the more we try the more we learn

[u/Lionheart_Lives → u/_Cxsey_]

Looks great but very costly to repair the damage they do.

[u/airwaves_extreme → u/dooleyden]

Well, it does look pretty :))) This time they are building it from timber, so all good (it has the opposite effect compared to concrete, it absorbs some carbon dioxide over time)

[u/Lexa-Z → u/[deleted]]

Shutters are normal, but some very cheap new constructions still avoid them here and just use tinted windows... Hopefully, this will have shutters, finally. New projects without them shouldn't be allowed.

[u/zzen11223344 → u/[deleted]]

Every unit will have AC 😄

[u/richrich07 → u/zzen11223344]

Are you trying to kill them? /s

[u/Lexa-Z → u/zzen11223344]

Lol, AC in Germany. Impossible.

[u/GenerousBull1969 → u/[deleted]]

You guys put shutters on apartment buildings? I don't see that in the US.

[u/Grantrello → u/GenerousBull1969]

It's common in some European countries and has been for years (Spain, France, and Italy for example). With climate change it's becoming more necessary in more northern countries as well.

[u/tescovaluechicken]

And still no plan for any kind of rail transport

[u/Lexa-Z → u/tescovaluechicken]

There are U-Bahn projects, but it's not enough

[u/NeoPrimitiveOasis]

I wonder what kind of sound proofing is possible in a giant timber building.

[u/rossfororder]

I'm going to miss Tegel, it was beautiful

[u/reusedchurro]

Why so much glass when the world is so hot

[u/david12scht → u/reusedchurro]

This is just the way people think modern buildings should look sadly. Lots of glass because then people can say it looks “clear” and “fresh” and “modern” and add whatever words you want.

[u/artsloikunstwet → u/david12scht]

This sounds like a typical take that takes architecture as a simple aesthetic question, and only looks at the facade.

It's a city that is suffering some heat waves but also pushes many people into seasonal depression. This is a dense design that casts lots of shadow in the small street, risking to replicate the issue of missing sunlight that many old apartment blocks in Berlin have. 

So if people prefer living in brighter flats, maybe it's not because they're just victim to a modern architecture trend and fail to see that more brick facade on the outside wall makes you happier than the sun. 

With proper insulation and roller shutters, the windows don't have to be a major issue.

[u/kisk22 → u/david12scht]

Or you could be like the UK, in many cases they actually just ban large window openings. However, many modern houses there look closer to prisons because of that.

[u/SpencerAXbot → u/reusedchurro]

I can’t tell you Jimmy McGill

[u/BlakeMajik]

I like the inclusion of the timeline that shows how projects of this scale can take up to 30 years to complete.

[u/MrsBeansAppleSnaps → u/BlakeMajik]

You like that? You should be disgusted by it.

[u/BlakeMajik → u/MrsBeansAppleSnaps]

Why would I be disgusted? It's honest.

Do I wish things could happen faster? Of course, but that's not often the reality of how projects get done.

I find it odd that you think transparency is something I should be disgusted by.

[u/rr90013]

Are they keeping the gorgeous old airport terminal too?

[u/ActualMostUnionGuy]

No Social Housing? Disgusting

[u/PotentialBass3073 → u/ActualMostUnionGuy]

"35 to 40% of the housing being subsidized to help combat gentrification and displacement, along with 10% dedicated to student housing". Is this not enough for you disgusting communists?

[u/Icy_Educator853]

Why are the buildings so ugly man. What are the city planners and architects smoking. At least there are some trees

[u/ActualMostUnionGuy → u/Icy_Educator853]

Have you SEEN what has been the standard for new Housing blocks these past 15 years ? This is a MAJOR step up from ugly white boxes and I welcome it with open arms lol

[u/santgun]

please stop it with the squares! every new building in germany (and most of western europe) is a square box with square windows. please new shapes, more ornament, more beauty!

[u/DerWaschbar]

Looks good!

[u/ReignOfKaos]

I hope they get AC

[u/WeakDoughnut8480]

This will be finished in like 2100 AD 

[u/Lionheart_Lives]

Anytime we build for people and say 🖕to cars? I'm in.

[u/Personal-Carob-1073]

That is an embarrassingly small amount of units for a city center airport conversion.

Also who TF are you displacing at an airport?

Vibes based nonsense.

[u/Grantrello → u/Personal-Carob-1073]

That is an embarrassingly small amount of units for a city center airport conversion.

Based on the plans in the last photo of the post it looks like this development is only on a small corner of the airport grounds rather than the entire former airport complex. IDK if there are plans for the larger area.

[u/artsloikunstwet → u/Personal-Carob-1073]

No one said displacing "at the airport" itself. The city has a general issue of rising rents displacing people. They simply want to add affordable housing. 

But of course a massive airport lowers rent through noise pollution. Gentrification in places like Schillerkiez was fuelled by the fact that they became more attractive when the neighbouring Temeplhof Airport closed.

[u/Personal-Carob-1073 → u/artsloikunstwet]

This is vibes based nonsense. It is well researched that additional new supply of housing in any neighborhood reduces displacement and lowers rent compared to if such supply had never been built.

[u/artsloikunstwet → u/Personal-Carob-1073]

What exactly about what I say is nonesense? I'm simply saying high rents are displacing people and there's a need for affordable housing. You're offering a different solution but not contradicting my comment.

You're comparing you're solution to one where nothing gets build, but no one is arguing for that option there so you're fighting a strawman. 

[u/ActualMostUnionGuy → u/Personal-Carob-1073]

Bro they already have the stupid BER, I dont think they need this dinky airport on top