The estate, in a popular district of south Berlin, was originally built in 1952/3 as basic accommodation for refugees from Eastern Europe. In the following decades the building fabric deteriorated and the area gradually became a ‘sink estate’, stigmatised as a place for antisocial and criminal behaviour. In the late 1980’s the housing association which owned the buildings planned to demolish the whole estate.

This proposal was immediately met with opposition from the residents, who organised themselves into a group and drew on the services of Baufrösche, an Architecture and Planning office with a strong record in integrated and ecological development. Baufrösche developed an alternative plan which envisaged the renovation and extension of the existing buildings by the addition of an extra storey, the relandscaping of the open spaces, and the provision of a new collective heating plant.

During the 4 years of phased construction work, residents lived for periods in temporary accommodation provided on the site, so that no-one was required to leave the site. In addition to modernizing the existing apartments, a whole range of new residences were provided, including apartments, maisonettes, lofts, as well as retail units, gardens and play areas, which attracted a broader social mix of new residents. The project successfully rehabilitated not just the built fabric, but also the perceptions of the estate and of its inhabitants, as it was they who had led the process. The area has lost its ‘bad name’ and is integrating with the neighbouring areas.