Free university and container village: Conflict of wasting terrain

Free university and container village: Conflict of wasting terrain

The property on Thielallee 63 in Berlin-Dahlem, which currently serves as a parking lot, is to be converted into a container village for 260 refugees for 260 refugees. However, this decision encounters resistance, especially at the Free University (FU). The university management feels over, since it was not included in the plans and only found out about it from the media. The FU has already helped accommodate refugees in emergency accommodation, but also emphasizes that the area is urgently needed for its own construction projects.

A spokesman for the FU pointed out that the university has already proposed alternative areas, including buildings from the Federal Real Estate Agency nearby. The Senate plans a total of 16 other container villages to counter the acute lack of housing for refugees. Despite the efforts of the Senate, locations for the container villages were specified, especially in the eastern part of the city, which leads to a further tightening of the imbalance in the distribution of the refugees.

As a result of the protests against the planned refugee accommodation on the universe area in Steglitz-Zehlendorf, critical voices were loud on the net. Some described the FU's reaction as inconsistent, otherwise it presented itself as cosmopolitan, but shows resistance when it comes to refugee accommodation. The debate also reflected a discrepancy between the public image of institutions and their practical actions.