The land in which the Spreefeld is today implemented has been sold to the Cooperative Spreefeld in 2010 after a 2 years long sale process by the Bundesanstalt for Immobilienaufgabe (Federal Agency for Property Assignments), a public enterprise under the right an surveillance of the German Finance Ministry. The land was until then used by the Kiki Blofeld - as In between use (Zwischennutzung) - which was forced to move out as well as its neighboring club the Kater Holzig (see Holzmarkt + Eckwerk). When the sale process started, the public policy regarding the cession of land was operated according to the principle of the highest bidder, not depending on the concept or future use of the zone. Despite those rules, the Spreefeld Cooperative managed to acquire the land and developed a unique financing model on 2 different levels: on the one hand regarding the buying and building costs, assumed by the community as a whole and on the other hand, the reduction of costs for the future renters as individual by subsidies and access to lower interest rates and « social » banking.
The initiative has been carried on by a group of 16 individuals amongst who the architect Christian Schöningh - initiator, developer and executor. He understood early as current user of the neighborhood the potential and challenges that this specific space represents for the city and managed to match political and personal ambitions: implementing cooperative housing and open - though private/cooperative - spaces at the river Spree contributes in enhancing a quality of lifestyle and produces a global reflexion by transforming alternatives into reality. As well, the model of the Spreefeld brings the now traditional «Baugruppe» model one step further: the conditions of access to the community orientates strictly towards a non-for-profit investment: the members of the community pay an entry fee to get a share of the community. This entry fee represents a small amount of money (from 1000 euros) compared to what would have to been paid to own a house. Further, the communers pay a rent to ensure the feasibility of the operation and the pay back of the debts to the financial actors. Once the total reimbursement of credits would be assumed, the question of maintaining a rent for maintenance or improvement of the structure will be discussed with every member. By leaving, the members of the community would get back the amount of money they invested at first and would be replaced by the entry fee of the new comer. As such, the limited company who originally bought the land transferred to a Construction and Housing Cooperative (B-WG) in 2012.
The architectural project has been developed by the Zusammenarbeiter for the development and program and by the association of Carpaneto+Schöningh, fatkoehl Architects and Bar Architects for its architectural form. The Spreefeld is constituted of 3 building blocks hosting 60 housing units different in sizes and typologies (including « Community Homes » of 600-800 m2) and 1000 m2 of « Option spaces » occupied or rented to creative users / entrepreneurs and/or used by the community as extra spaces. On the land, one can also find the Boat house situated directly at the river Spree supports today cultural public events. And last but not least, the main part of the compound are the open spaces and the beach directly at the Spree constituting more than 40% of the superficie of the ground and everyday used by campers, enjoyers and passers by without apparently creating interferences with the community.
Source ©Carpaneto+Schoeningh
Source ©Fatkoehl Architekten
Digging in the press (in german)
22.06.11 - Taz: Mieter mit Spreeblick
05.09.2011 - Berliner Zeitung: Die Party an der Spree geht
03.03.2015 - Tagesspiegel: Am alten Kater Holzig wird gewohnt - und gefeiert
2014 - Bauwelt: Spreefeld. (Interview of the architects, Full article in pdf.)
Digging in the press (in english)
16.09.2011 - Exberliner: Spreefeld: Third Way on the Spree?
18.11.2014 - Vivero Iniciativas Ciudadanas: Citizen urbanism: economical scapes
Downloads
. Satzung der Bau- und Wohngenossenschaft Spreefeld Berlin eG (June 2015)
. Ecke Köpenicker n°4 - June 2014
. Formal and informal planning strategies encouraging private developers to realize inclusive, mixed-use housing projects: Urban renewal in Berlin’s post-industrial waterfront Spree area. / Master Thesis 2013 (TU Berlin - Urban Management) Maria del Pilar Ospina, supervisor: Dr. Michael Lafond (in english)
. Feasibility Study for the Spreeuferpromenade (p 27-30, details on the current B-Plan I-32aa and I-32ab)
Interview from Dr. Michael Lafond on the Spreefeld project and cooperative (in german)
