Urban Living Comfort
A Stroll in The Summer of 2015
Berlin Adlershof. It is sunny, students are taking their books out to the park. About 380 young people are living and working in the student village of Adlershof right on the campus of Humboldt University. To get to their next lecture they only have to cross the street.
Since 2012, approximately 1,000 apartments have been built in Adlershof’s residential district Wohnen am Campus. The developments carried out here are no mass-market products of uniform architecture. Instead, they represent an intelligent modern district meeting a variety of housing needs and ensuring a lively mix of residents. For a technology location such as this, it is a matter of honour that all houses are designed according to ecological requirements.
It is a quiet neighbourhood characterised by traffic-calmed streets, 20 mph zones, play streets, walkways and cycle paths. Cars are parked in underground car parks. A building group has been formed to develop an energyplus-house ensemble on Newtonstraße. The houses are designed to produce more energy than they consume. Any surplus energy is fed into the public grid. The members of this building group have planned, calculated and made their decisions in collaboration. Families have become friends with each other, having joint barbecues while their children are playing ball games on the lawns between the houses.
Further down the district, the meadow on Katharina-Boll-Dornberger-Straße makes for an oasis of green, perfect for strolling and relaxing. Those who have opted for one of the townhouses featuring big window surfaces, gardens and roof terraces enjoy a quiet and green living environment. Some of the residents are freelancers using their ground-floors as studios or offices. After all, the first and second floors offer enough living space for the entire family.
With its appealing rented and owner-occupied flats, the lively neighbourhood caters to the various needs of all generations. Old and young meet at the meadow, at the birch grove or in the children’s playground.
Living in Adlershof is about combining a feeling of urbanity with ample space for recreation and leasure activities while enjoying excellent transport connections. The tramway line leads right up to the residential area, and buses, the S-Bahn and the motorway provide fast connections into the city or to the airport. Those who live here have long realised: Adlershof offers a quality of living that cannot be taken for granted in larger urban environments.
by Kirsten Niemann