Berlin's cityscape
December 3, 2009
Judges at the Higher Regional Court in Duesseldorf ruled Wednesday that the reconstruction of Berlin's Stadtschloss, or City Palace, may take place according to plans by Italian architect Franco Stella.
The court said Stella was eligible to participate in the architectural competition that had won him the bid for reconstruction last year. Furthermore, judges said Stella's employment of two larger architectural firms to help him with his designs was unproblematic.
German Transport and Construction Minister Peter Ramsauer welcomed the court's decision. "Construction of Berlin's City Palace can now get underway without delay," he said. "The palace will be a magnet beyond the city's borders, and will be a calling card for Germany."
Claims of not fulfilling requirements
Following the announcement of the competition's winner, Berlin architect Hans Kollhoff lodged a complaint with the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning over an alleged lack of transparency in the contest requirements.
The Berlin magazine zitty reported that Stella had not earned the required minimum salary of 300,000 euros ($419,000) between the years 2004 and 2006 and that his firm did not employ the minimum number of architects stipulated in the contest rules.
The zitty report also claimed that German authorities had not checked details Stella had provided in his competition application.
Stella denied the allegations. Kollhoff himself had secured only a joint third place in the architecture competition.
The German Cartel Office later agreed with Kollhoff, stating that the government's contract with Stella was invalid. The government then appealed that ruling, with the Duesseldorf court this week confirming the appeal.
A sore spot for decades
Germany has debated for decades over the reconstruction of the flagship City Palace, which was damaged by Allied bombing during World War II. It was later demolished by the East German government in 1950 to make way for the Palast der Republik, which housed the East German parliament. The demolition of the building began in 2006.
The original royal palace on the site was the principal residence of the Kings of Prussia and German emperors from 1701 to 1918.
The new construction of the palace, which is to be called the Humboldt Forum, will cost an estimated 552 million euros ($835 million). Its Baroque facade will lead into a modern interior, which is to be used as an arts center, public library and teaching space. Building is to begin next year and end in 2016.
The center of Berlin is currently undergoing an architectural make-over according to historical guidelines, with the hope of lending more pre-war scenery to its modern flair.
Chancellor Angela Merkel's government of conservatives and the business-friendly Free Democrats made the construction of the Humboldt Forum a priority in their coalition contract, following national elections in September.
als/dpa/AP
Editor: Kate Bowen