Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf is sounding the alarm: according to the district office, investors in larger housing projects are no longer required to build playgrounds as part of new developments. The Senate Department for Urban Development recently changed the guidelines for the Berlin Model for Cooperative Land Development, according to a press release. The district believes this puts an important tool for child-friendly urban development at risk. “We should learn from the mistakes made in many large housing estates. Missing infrastructure is almost impossible to make up for,” said District Councillor Oliver Schruoffeneger.
Until now, investors in large housing developments also had to provide space for playgrounds. This meant that new buildings with more than six flats were required to have a play area on the property of at least four square metres per flat, with a minimum total area of 50 square metres . If there was not enough space on the property, compensation payments could be made instead. The districts used this money to expand, renovate or improve public playgrounds.
Building in Berlin: Playgrounds Are No Longer a Given
The Senate Department disputes the district’s account. It says only the fixed agreement with investors under the Berlin Model is being removed, not the obligation to plan for public playgrounds. The benchmark of one square metre of play space per resident will also remain in place. In future, however, each construction project will have to be assessed individually to determine what space is needed and how it will be secured and financed. Particularly in poorly served areas, planners will still have to look for suitable sites, the department says.
 "Wahlheymat Teaser Newsletter englische Sprache")
In Berlin leben so viele Nationalitäten wie in kaum einer anderen Stadt im Lande. Für all diese Menschen hat die Berliner Morgenpost in Zusammenarbeit mit dem gemeinnützigen Verein „WahlheYmat“ den Newsletter „WahlheYmatPost“ ins Leben gerufen. Wenn Sie oder Ihre Bekannten jeden Donnerstagabend in englischer Sprache spannende Perspektiven auf das Leben in Berlin direkt in Ihrem Postfach finden wollen –
hier können Sie die WahlheYmatPost abonnieren.
For Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, this is precisely where the problem lies. Instead of relying on binding requirements, the district will in future have to negotiate directly with investors over the necessary social infrastructure, it said. “It makes no sense for the State of Berlin to spend millions developing and preparing planning instruments such as the Social Infrastructure Concept and district profiles if the deficits identified in them are then ignored in actual planning,” Schruoffeneger said.
Playground Shortage in Berlin: The Situation Is Particularly Bad Here
For Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, the change comes at a particularly difficult time. The district already has a severe shortage of playgrounds. According to the state’s latest data, the district should have 343,625 square metres of public play space. In reality, it has only 173,337 square metres. This leaves a shortfall of 170,288 square metres – nearly half of what is needed.
We should learn from the mistakes made in many large housing estates.
Oliver Schruoffeneger, District Councillor for Public Order, Environment, Roads and Green Spaces
The district is not alone. Although there are more than 1,900 playgrounds across Berlin, the city still falls far short of its own target. The benchmark is based on Berlin’s Children’s Playground Act, according to which one square metre of public play space should be available per resident. By this standard, Berlin as a whole is short of around 1.61 million square metres. Existing playgrounds therefore meet only 59 percent of demand, leaving a deficit of 41 percent. In Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, the gap is as high as 50 percent.
Why Playground Costs Are Rising in Berlin’s Districts
Lichtenberg shows how high the ongoing maintenance costs for playgrounds can be: between 2020 and 2025, the district spent around €364,000 to €553,000 per year on maintenance. This is according to a parliamentary inquiry submitted by Left Party MP Hendrikje Klein in March this year. If necessary renovations are not carried out, more maintenance is required. At the same time, individual pieces of equipment or entire playgrounds are more likely to be closed, the district office in Lichtenberg said in response to the politician’s inquiry.
Berlin’s playgrounds are likely to require further investment, partly as a result of climate change. More heat and intense sunlight are increasing the need to provide effective shade for play areas. Shade sails protect against UV radiation and can reduce heat, but they are expensive and vulnerable to damage. Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, therefore, does not currently use shade sails. The district is mainly concerned about vandalism and instead plants trees to provide shade.
Lichtenberg also illustrates how expensive technical solutions can be: installing twelve shade sails there, including searches for possible unexploded ordnance, cost around €596,000. In Tempelhof-Schöneberg, around €23,000 was spent on a single shade sail as far back as 2008. Districts also need more money to make playgrounds more inclusive, for example by making them accessible to children who use wheelchairs – money that is likely to become even harder to secure in future.