Felds of dreams

Last month, Berlin city councillors sent letters to 20,000 residents inviting them to discuss what happens next to one of the city's best-known parks.

- Cathrin Schaer

Tempelhofer Feld, a former Nazi-era airport-turned-park, is huge and historic. It has gone from a grand symbol of Hitler's building prowess to an icon of post-war democracy. This was where American planes landed during the Soviet blockade of Berlin, part of the 1948-49 airlift that kept the city out of communist hands.

Tempelhofer Feld opened as a park in 2010 and today, it's a vast green space intersected by runways. On summer weekends, its 3.5sq km are packed with roller skaters, skateboarders, dog walkers, cyclists and the smoke of a thousand tiny barbecues. 

In winter, it's a vast construction site for snowmen. In between seasons, it's a musical breeding ground for migrating skylarks. In other words, it's a bit of an urban treasure.

A few years ago, there was talk of building apartments here to remedy Berlin's housing crisis. But local activists, suspecting real estate profiteering, organised a city-wide referendum asking Berliners what they wanted.