Görlitz „Östliche Nikolaivorstadt“
In Görlitz, an inner city neighbourhood was upgraded through the commitment of investors and small private owners.
This project has been put into the archive. The project details will not be updated anymore.
Context
The city of Görlitz has a special bridging function between East and West as a result of its location on the German-Polish border. The population has been falling for decades. In 1989, approx. 78,000 people lived in the Saxon city. Today that figure is just approx. 57,000 people (2008). As a result, the city has to fight with a very high vacancy rate. All urban districts are affected, both in old and new buildings.
Östliche Nikolaivorstadt, which is directly adjacent to the historic Altstadt (old city), had a housing vacancy rate of around 70% in the mid-1990s. The building stock, which overwhelmingly comes from the Wilhelminian period, is largely in a derelict condition and lead to the urban district having a negative image. meanwhile, the City of Görlitz, in cooperation with private owners and investors and contractors, has succeeded in revitalising the neighbourhood.
Project description
The revitalisation measures in the östliche Nikolaivorstadt began in 1999 in the Rothenburger Strasse/Grosse Wallstrasse area.
As a first step, an investor purchased several neighbouring properties, partly with run-down buildings and large spaces. The property structure was reorganised. For example, it was possible to carry out the restoration and construction measures with building structures divided into small sections, typical for the region. The urban planning concept envisaged structures for inner city detached houses with gardens of around 200 m².
The second step involved selling the properties with a building obligation. Overwhelmingly, the sales were to owner-occupier families. Some terraced houses have been developed by construction companies. In order to secure the urban planning goals for the neighbourhood, the City of Görlitz concluded urban planning contracts with the property owners. The basis for these was an urban planning design. All properties in the Rothenburger Strasse/Grosse Wallstrasse area have now been developed. Seven small townhouses with parking spaces and a shared garden have been built.
Since 2004, another plot in the Grosse Wallstrasse/Am Hirschwinkel area has been developed. A new residential area was built on the approx. 5000 m² site after a commercial complex was demolished. Once again, a private investor purchased the plots in order to restructure them. The sale of the original building and the newly allocated properties were connected to the renovation and development. In this case, the purchasers again are mainly owner-occupiers. Meanwhile, the structural redevelopment of this area has been completed.
In both areas, the existing old buildings or remains were redeveloped, where possible, and integrated into the new building structures. The extensive construction work also triggered numerous redevelopment measures in the entire neighbourhood. Thanks to these synergy effects, the östliche Nikolaivorstadt has become a very popular residential neighbourhood, especially amount young families, which now has a considerably reduced vacancy rate of just 5%.
Project chronology
Year | Event |
---|---|
1999 to 2003 | Upgrading measures in the Rothenburger Strasse/ Grosse Wallstrasse neighbourhood: Property restructuring, redevelopment, restoration and new build, sale of land and properties |
Since 2004 | Development of the new Grosse Wallstrasse/ Am Hirschwinkel residential neighbourhood on the former commercial wasteland: Demolition, structural and urban planning restructuring, sales of land and properties |
2008 | Development of the Rothenburger Strasse/Grosse Wallstrasse and Grosse Wallstrasse/Am Hirschwinkel neighbourhoods completed |
Aims
- Upgrading and revitalisation of an inner city neighbourhood
- Reduction in the immense vacancy rate
- Improving the image of the urban district
- Conserving the building structure typical for the region
- Developing new forms of cooperation between the city, small private owners, as well as investors and developers
Types of measures
- Urban planning design from the investor (Toscano GmbH) as basis for the joint plan, approval and marketing of the individual development projects
- Development agreement between City of Görlitz and private owners
- Property reallocation and restructuring in advance of the redevelopment
- New development of building structures with small structures according to urban planning requirements, as typical for the region
- New development of owner-occupier houses and apartments in the inner city area
- Redevelopment and inclusion of existing (partial) buildings and external facilities
- Neighbourhood boundaries to Am Hirschwinkel with planted, natural stone wall
- Complete infrastructural development of the area (access roads, media connections, lighting, etc.)
Innovations
Because of the procedure agreed by all stakeholders involved, a large part of the vacant, inner city residential area has successfully been converted into an attractive and popular residential location. Because of the commitment of the investors and the intensive cooperation of the city with the private stakeholders, the restructuring of the two neighbourhoods and extensive development projects have been realised, also away from the larger development measures. The sale of apartments and building plots to private owners, notably to owner-occupiers, has also contributed to stronger identification for the residents with their urban district.
As a result of the extensive upgrading measures, neighbouring private owners were also encourages to carry our renovations and to contribute to the urban district's change in image. Consequently, the successful development of a small inner city area has made a significant contribution to the revitalisation of the entire Görlitz inner city.
Sources
- Toscano GmbH, Görlitz http://www.toscano-gmbh.de/staedtebau.htm
Further information
- Sanierungs- und Entwicklungs - Gesellschaft Görlitz mbH (SEG): http://www.seges-goerlitz.de/?Projekte_im_Bild:Nikolaivorstadt
The projekt site ist to be found at postal code: 02806 - town: Görlitz - street: Große Wallstraße .
Poject site on Google-Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/KHSNiKVqGWK2
Last update: 07.03.2018