Economist.com Cities Guide: Berlin Briefing - August 2005

News this month

No-fly zone

Germany's government has banned private pilots from flying over central Berlin after a first-world-war replica plane crashed near government buildings on July 22nd, sparking fears of a terrorist attack. Police identified the dead pilot as Volker Klawitter, a man who had been under investigation over the disappearance of his wife (her body was later found at Mr Klawitter's home in East Berlin). Mr Klawitter is reported to have told a neighbour he was going to do something big that day.

Opposition politicians were quick to criticise security around the Reichstag and Federal Chancellery. From now onwards, unarmed police helicopters will be stationed outside the city to deal with potential suicide attacks. The hot-air balloon in Potsdamer Platz, which offers tourists views of Berlin, was also grounded—but rose again on August 5th after the city decided to treat it as an exceptional case.

The Wow factor

Germany’s federal election remains over a month away, but one winner has already emerged: Klaus Wowereit, Berlin’s flashy, Social Democrat mayor. With his can-do attitude and trendy image, the openly gay 51-year-old is quietly positioning himself as the next great hope for his party. Even if Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, a Social Democrat, loses the election—as most predict—“Wowi” should emerge unscathed. He is up for re-election in Berlin in 2006 and, if he wins, will have the perfect platform from which to launch a bid for Germany's top political job. Given the marked lack of other young, Social Democratic leaders, it would seem Mr Wowereit's chances are good.

Early starters

Many of Berlin’s 330,000 primary school children began the first day of the new school year on August 8th facing huge changes. The biggest is that 41,000 children aged between five-and-a-half and six-and-a-half joined the ranks of the first-graders. That’s six months younger than first-graders of years gone by, a change demanded by reforms in 2004 designed to improve the quality—and the abysmal test scores—of the capital’s students.

Secondly, all of the city’s 408 primary schools will have to provide childcare after 1.30pm, when the normal school-day ends. Previously, children either went home or to after-school facilities. Now, schools will have to build facilities such as sports halls, cafeterias and craft centres to keep them entertained. Critics are frustrated that guidelines are scant and that it remains unclear whether the care, which parents will pay for, is meant to educate or baby-sit the children. The federal government has promised €147m ($182m) towards building costs. Until the changes are complete in 2008, many of Berlin’s schools will probably resemble building sites.

Work for the gatekeeper

One of the biggest draws at Berlin’s Pergamon Museum is getting a facelift. At over 2,600 years old, the Ishtar Gate—one of the eight fabled gates of the ancient city of Babylon—is beginning to show its age. Wolfgang Frey, who is heading the restoration, says his team found the 47-foot-tall artefact to be in “critical condition” in “about 1,000 places”. The main culprit is the museum’s lack of air-conditioning: wavering temperatures and humidity levels have proved disastrous for the glaze that seals the gate’s enamel tiles, about one-tenth of which are original.

Mr Frey’s restoration work, which began in early August, is taking place before an average of 2,000 daily visitors. As with most anti-ageing surgery, chemicals are slowly injected into the surface after each section has been cleaned. The initial process will probably continue until Christmas, but the entire €1.9m restoration project is expected to last until 2019. Luckily, Mr Frey is only 35 years old.

Flat rate

The number of flats in Berlin has risen by 6% to an astonishing 1.88m over the past six years. That’s one flat for every 1.8 Berliners, according to a study released on August 1st by the regional statistics centre (Statistische Landesamt). The trouble is, during those six years the city’s population also shrank by 2.4%, mainly due to Berlin's lack of any substantial industry and its failure to boom after it became Germany's capital in 1999.

Many flats now stand empty and prices for homes and rentals remain significantly below those of other major European cities. That’s partly what gives Berlin its youthful buzz: 920,000 (or 27.6%) of the city’s residents are under the age of 27. They are growing used to having plenty of personal space, since the average flat in Berlin measures 70 square metres.

Catch if you can

August 2005

Volkspalast 2005: Der Berg

Until August 26th 2005

Berlin's splendidly crumbling Palace of the Republic (which once hosted the East German parliament) is due to be demolished later this year. So try if you can to catch the last exhibition to be held here. Some 35 artists have contributed art works, video installations and sound tracks that remind the visitor of the building's intriguing heritage and suggest possible future uses for the site. The highlight, however, is “Der Berg” (the mountain), a 44-metre high artificial mountain that shoots straight up to the ceiling. Among the three different routes up, we found the philosopher’s path to be the most inspiring. An audio guide is available in English.

Palast der Republik, Berlin-Mitte. Tel: +49 (30) 259 004 27. Tickets: €13. For more information visit the palace's official website.

More from the Berlin cultural calendar