The Quartier Am Humboldthain (QAH) is located on the former site of the Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft (AEG) factory. Evidence of the area’s industrial past can still be seen in the listed brick buildings that border the site and which today are home to TU Berlin and the Fraunhofer Institute, among others.

AEG first started producing electric motors and other electronic products at the site in 1895. Production continued until 1983 when AEG closed its premises. The buildings on the eastern side of the site were demolished and the Technologie Park Humboldthain (TPH) was constructed on the western side. Nixdorf later built a production site on the eastern side which it continued to operate until the early 1990s. One of the original buildings still survives and today houses the service center of the Berliner Sparkasse.

In order to arrive at a concrete and viable concept for the future of the Humboldthain neighborhood, we want to follow the “open project development” approach in our planning process and develop approaches for a modern urban neighborhood in the Brunnenviertel together with Berliners, politicians, administrators, scientists, and businesses.
As part of our “workshop process,” we are conducting several moderated expert and citizen rounds in which we will develop a joint utilization concept in an open-ended dialog with interest groups that seek to balance a wide variety of interests and is ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable for the neighborhood and its people.

For the development of an urban and livable neighborhood, it is important to us not to anticipate solutions, but to keep the dialogue open-ended. In the workshop process, a number of expert and citizen groups will develop a solid basis for the development of the neighborhood.

In the discussion, specific knowledge and ideas are activated by addressing different levels. On the one hand, the knowledge comes from recognized experts; on the other hand, it reflects the everyday experiences of local people.

At the end of 2021, we launched the first stage of our urban planning competition for QAH. Based on our workshop findings, we produced a series of tender documents and then sent requests for proposals to 24 renowned architecture firms. The challenge: To devise innovative urban planning solutions for the approximately 6.5 hectare QAH site in the Mitte district in central Berlin. The deadline for submissions was mid March 2022. From these proposals, eight winning designs were selected and then developed further as part of the second stage of the competition.

The winner of the second stage of the urban planning competition for the new QAH in Berlin was announced by the judging panel on August 12, 2022. The winning design by Danish architecture firm “Cobe” was then presented to the public. Second place went to a joint design from the firms “Ortner & Ortner Baukunst” and “capattistaubach urbane landschaften”, and third place was awarded to the entry from “Robertneun TM GmbH” and “Atelier Loidl Landschaftsarchitekten GmbH”.

The winning design by Danish architecture firm “Cobe” will now be used to devise a development plan for the site. Proposed are a series of primarily five-to-eight-story buildings with elevations around a central green park. Under the plans, the currently isolated area will be transformed into a modern and eco-friendly district that is open to everyone – businesses and residents alike. The main phase of building work for QAH is expected to be complete by 2030.