Like many European cities, Berlin is constantly negotiating the boundary between ’city’ and ’infrastructure’. Historically, Berlin’s railway has been a critical part of the development of the entire city. At the centre of its industry, the railway is crucial for the city, connecting it with the rest of the world. However, intensive development of industry has resulted in numerous sites at the fringes between urbanity and infrastructure. These areas, most often characterised by back sides and poor connectivity, are now amongst the city’s most valuable assets.  In today’s context, with the city growing, these spaces provide a unique chance for inner-city densification and are the ideal canvas for re-imagining urbanity.

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The Köpenicker Gleisharfe (New Green for Old Iron) is our proposal for a new Köpenick, lively and diverse, faithful to its context and history, but also ambitious and experimental - where sustainability is promoted in all aspects. It brings the railway edge back to the city, generating a space that offers a new set of possibilities. A vibrant urban area with unique work typologies, housing, and opportunities for recreation.

Köpenicker Gleisharfe is a neighbourhood for the future built upon solid and timeless urban principles. It is precisely in the robustness of the classical city fabric that this new piece of Berlin finds space for innovation. Like many successful European cities Kopenicker Gleisharfe puts pedestrians first. Its streets and public spaces are first and foremost dimensioned for people and not infrastructure. It is a new urban area built upon abundant green structures with its main framework built upon tracing existing landscape components and strengthening them. Whether through a generous park, lush boulevards, comfortable courtyards or vibrant green roofs, living in the Gleisharfe is centred around green and nature.






The Kopenicker Gleisharfe also celebrates the urban block of the 19th century European city. Its clear urban structure and strong definition of public and private space provides a robust backbone for future development. Pairing this with contemporary typologies and architecture results in an exciting and resilient urbanity.

Place Köpenick Berlin DE
Date 2022-2024
Type International urban design competition 1st Prize, Framework Planning, Functional Planning
Client SenStadt, City of Berlin
Project credits Karres en Brands, Adept Architects, PGT Umwelt / Verkehr  

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