It's Daniel Libeskind not Liebermann. ;) On the polish forum attiude towards ZT is rather negative, most of the people consider it antiurban because of the lack of an accessibility. On the other hand we need some major demolitions of the ugly buildings from the communist era and thats why we're jealous because Berlin can afford it. ;)

looks like there gonna be many projects in Berlin :)...

Take a look how the urban network of trams/metro/S-bahn/U-bahn changed from 1999 to 2004

http://www.stadtentwicklung.berlin.d...n-strecken.pdf

Follow the demolition of the Palast der Republik here:

http://www.dhm.de/zcam

Some old pictures of the original Berliner Schloss to be rebuilt on the same spot:

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/6...sel19136sn.jpg

http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/7...schloss0lc.jpg

http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/6...lin19397ns.jpg

http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/8...ergraben2f.jpg

This new castle is to be integrated into the Humboldt Forum a part of the Museumsinsel area => http://www.museumsinsel-berlin.de/.

+ some aerial pictures of the old city centre:

http://www.luftschiffreise.de/bilder...land-large.jpg

http://www.luftschiffreise.de/bilder/zf-alex2-large.jpg

http://www.luftschiffreise.de/bilder/zf-alex1-large.jpg

BERLIN, Germany (AP) -- Germany's capital will have a major international air hub, after a federal court cleared the way for plans to expand the former East Berlin airport following nearly a decade of resistance from citizens.

Work to transform Schoenefeld airport into the new, state-of-the-art Berlin-Brandenburg International is to begin this summer, after the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig gave the project the go-ahead Thursday.

Officials welcomed the ruling, saying the project, which has been hamstrung by protests and lawsuits, would give the capital and its surrounding region a badly needed economic boost. The new airport is expected to open in the fall of 2011 and create roughly 40,000 jobs.

"This is the most important decision for Berlin since parliament voted to move the capital there," said Eric Schweitzer, the president of Berlin's Chamber of Commerce.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said the airport would be a boon for the capital.

"Now the path is clear for a modern, competitive international airport in Berlin," she said in a statement. "The new BBI is of great significance for the economic development of the Berlin-Brandenburg region and for the federal capital."

Although the court said it saw no legal reason why the euro2.5 billion (US$3 billion) project to develop the former East Berlin airport should not proceed, it placed restrictions on night flights, including prohibiting landings after 10 p.m., and noise pollution. It also required developers to adequately compensate affected residents.

Germany's second-largest carrier, Air Berlin, which currently has some flights in an out of Schoenefeld, criticized the night flight restrictions for seriously limiting business travel and freight flights, which normally arrive after passenger hours.

"If you can't land between 10 p.m. and midnight, then it's not possible to attract business travelers," Air Berlin chief Joachim Hunold said.

Pending completion of the new airport, West Berlin's more centrally located Tegel and Tempelhof airports are to remain open.

Some 4,000 residents of Berlin and its surrounding state of Brandenburg, where Schoenefeld airport is located, had filed a series of legal suits in an attempt to block the expansion, which they maintain will cause environmental problems.

The Berlin-Brandenburg International Airport (BBI), in the planning for almost 15 years, has had its wings clipped repeatedly. First conceived in the heady days after reunification, the airport has run into protests every step of the way from drawing board to construction crane.

Work had actually already begun on the site southeast of Berlin, but the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig ordered workers to put down their hammers last April until it heard complaints from almost 4,000 residents who opposed the two-billion-euro ($2.4 billion) project.

But that same court today handed down a final ruling that allows construction to resume on the airport that proponents say could create up to 40,000 jobs in the economically struggling region and is essential if Berlin wants to remain in the top tier of European cities. BBI is scheduled to be opened by 2011.
No further appeal against the ruling is possible



New conditions set

At the same time, the court did say authorities would have to take additional measures to reduce noise and the overall environmental impact of the air hub on the surrounding region.

Opponents had argued that Berlin was well served by its three already existing airports, Tegel, Tempelhof and Schöneberg -- the latter once communist East Berlin's airport. But proponents, including politicians and business leaders, had argued that an international airport in Berlin was crucial for the further economic development of the region.

Currently, Berlin is not easily reachable with direct flights from destinations outside of Europe. Often, it is necessary to fly through larger airports such as Frankfurt, Paris or London, when traveling overseas.

Critics admitted even before the ruling that they did not think their chances of winning were great, but said if the court ruled that more environmental protection measures had to be put in place, it would be a partial victory.

The airport would eventually result in the phasing out of Tegel and Tempelhof airports, and would make the German capital the country's second biggest air hub after the western city of Frankfurt.

aerial picture of the BBI Airport:

http://img157.imageshack.us/img157/8438/bbi7da.jpg

Tiergartentunnel finished this Sunday
 

The 2,4 km long tunnel under the Tiergarten, Berlin has been completed this Sunday after ten years of construction.

Further information: (in German)

http://www.spiegel.de/auto/aktuell/0...408036,00.html

The world wheel
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/3155/1big0fa.jpg

New Ernst & Young headquarters
http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/5...001full8bs.jpg

http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/1...1a2b4ef1wp.jpg

Unter den Linden Development
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/8...013full6mv.jpg

Although I agree that Berlin needs this new Airport, it will still be sad to see Tempelhof close. This is one of the most beautiful airports in the world, and I have yet to find any historical airport coming anywhere close to Tempelhof in design. It was so large for its size, considered the 2nd largest building in the world in the 40's and still one of the largest.

Personally, I think there still is a role for Tempelhof. It can never handle large aircraft, but it would make the perfect city break airport once Berlins economy comes back to shape. It is very close to downtown Berlin, and would make the perfect equivilent to London's "City" airport.

Any idea Grumpy what the plans for this airport are once it closes?

Normon Foster called this building "The mother of all airports". Here are some photos.

http://www.heine-foto.de/Heine&Heine...lhofDia_03.jpg

The great curve of the terminal
http://www.aborigines-aviation.de/RB...1010079_ff.jpg

I'm sure that the government won't allow it to destroy the airport building.
I remember that there were plans to keep the area for a future Olympic Games develpoment.

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/1091/tempel17gv.jpg

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/2618/tempel29vq.jpg

I have to check if there are flights from Frankfurt to Tempelhof, as I'd love to land in that airport before it closes.

I know that the eastern part next to the airstrip was once planned to built a autobahn to Kreuzberg , got cancelled afterwards.
Isn't there a part of the actual airport building not a police school ?

the new main trainstation of BLN , official inauguration : may 27th and I am invited :yes:

http://static.flickr.com/36/123266179_80461fa545_o.jpg

That's quite an honor to have been invited. So have a great time, Grumpy!:drummer:

I'm sure we can count on some great pix upon your return. :)

May I ask how tall that tower is in those aerial pics? the one with the dome in the middle? :)

That is Berlin's tv tower with a total height of 368m.

=> http://www.skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?c604

thanks , I will

you bet ;)

new rendering of the Arena:

http://img140.imageshack.us/img140/9...scaleup9mz.jpg

The Removal of the Palast der Republik

The Procedure

The construction site at the Palace of the Republic was set up in January 2006 - the actual dismantling work began one month later.

The first phase of the removal will last until June 2006 and involve dismantling the steel, glass and aluminium exterior elements, and removing the roof. To do this, two revolving tower cranes will be set up on the side of the Palace facing away from the Spree River and one on the side facing Rathausstrasse.

Two more cranes will be involved in phase two of the removal: one along the Spree and one on the Palace Square. As soon as the fill has been successfully poured into the basement, these five cranes will remove the steel framework and ceilings piece by piece starting with the centre section, the foyer.

When the removal of the centre foyer is complete, the two remaining Palace sections on each side will stand apart from each other like individual buildings. At this point, it will be possible to extend the ground rail track of the revolving crane located on the Palace Square through the former foyer area almost all the way to the Spree. Much like the crane on the Rathhausstrasse side of the Palace, this crane will be able to function over the entire breadth of the building and move easily between the two remaining sections.

The supporting frame of each of the two remaining sections will consist of seven steel trussed beams, each weighing up to 325 tons and extending up to 81 metres. In the third dismantling phase, these beams will be hoisted upwards one at a time by two heavy mobile cranes and disassembled on the ground. After this, the principal supports that held the frame will be torn down.

In the end, only the eight reinforced concrete towers that housed the staircases and elevators will remain standing. In the final dismantling phase, these 30-metre high concrete cores will be demolished using four long front excavators with hydraulic pincers. Trucks and wheeled loaders will transport the shattered concrete pieces to the pier where they will be transported away.
A total of 78,000 tons of demolition material will result from the dismantling of the Palace. All of it must be recycled or disposed of properly and in an environmentally friendly manner:

* 19,300 tons of iron and steel (sections and reinforced)
* 56,600 tons of concrete
* 600 tons of bricks and wood
* 500 tons of glass (approx. 8,200 m2)
* 1,000 tons of bitumen mixtures, plastics and insulating materials
* 200 tons of material needing special monitoring

The Olympic Stadium is ready to host the guests

http://www.stadtentwicklung.berlin.d...ion_cr_800.jpg

I am off to Berlin :banana: