Unexpected uses have often accelerated processes of economic recovery3. The empty spaces can be considered urban reserves for testing collective dreams4. Introducing temporary projects in old buildings allows design experimentation, sharing knowledge of different populations, as well as the sedimentation of local economies, fertile (social) capital for longer lasting urban regeneration processes. Berlin’s temporary reuse space is Volkpalast (Palast der Republik/ the Palace of the People) -–the parliamentary seat (and symbol) of the German Democratic Republic (DDR). The political reunification after 1989 where Berlin was accompanied by radical changes of an end to East vs West citizen subsidisation, and a delayed collapse of industries leading to economic free fall and high unemployment. Berlin’s urban fabric today still bears the signs of this collapse with its fragmented and open nature. Dense urban areas are situated between vast open spaces and wastelands. The expectation of massive economic and demographic growth that would follow the reinstallation of the German Federal Government fuelled an intense, developer driven urbanism which the city tried to control through rigid planning rules based on c19 high-density urban typologies. Though, in early 2000 it became clear that this expected growth failed to materialise. Vast remaining inner city wastelands, buildings, high vacancy rates of new housing developments, offices and commercial spaces, led to the real estate market downfall. Today, developers prefer to “wait for better times” while Berlin’s virtually collapsed economy adds further strain on municipal budgets whose action has been tide by strict national fiscal restrictions. Urban planners, economists, researchers and activists for radical reassessment of current planning and development models could consider this crisis as a chance. Throughout the 1990s, uncertainty and openness helped generate a unique culture of informal and temporary uses that occurred mostly outside prescribed planning processes. From 2001 Urban Catalyst office5 together with the Senate of Berlin developed the (Zwischennutzungs)fond concept (round table for temporary use), which will bring together the municipal government, large property owners, investors and temporary activists in order to discuss possibilities of temporary use as an urban development device. Such discussions will help promote an understanding of the advantages and potential of these new instruments into a strategic planning process. In this socio-cultural, economic and urban planning context we will observe the temporary reuse Volkpalast project. In 2002, the building was home to art installations, a hostel and numerous public meetings edited by the architects and researchers of Urban Catalyst. One of the project installations, run by the Raumlaborberlin collective, is the much-discussed “Der Berg” (The Mountain). Here, Raumlaborberlin not only assumed artistic direction, but also developed a “Philosopher’s Walk” and “Gasthof Bergkristall”, where guests could spend the night on-site at the Schlossplatz in the heart of Berlin. Despite the cultural fermentation generated by these public activities, in 2003 the Government demolished the Palast der Republik and removed that symbol. Additionally, the legacy was that the group of activists, architects, researchers, artists and citizens was strong enough to trigger discussion on 3 Isabella Inti, “Spazi Urbani Residuali e Azioni Temporanee, un’occasione per ridefinire i territori, gli attori e le Politiche urbane/ "residual urban spaces and temporary actions, an opportunity to redefine the territories, stakeholders and Urban Policies “,doctoral dissertation DrPPT_Dottorato in Pianificazione Territoriale e Politiche Pubbliche del Territorio, IUAV_ Istituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia, 2005. 4 transparadiso (Barbara Holub, Paul rajakovics), “Vacancies and urban reserves” in “Temporary urban spaces”, ed. Birkhauser, 2007 5 see footnote n.2
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RE-USE . Isabella Inti