New Anna Lindh primary school: opportunity after the mold debacle!

New Anna Lindh primary school: opportunity after the mold debacle!

The official opening of the new school location of the Anna Lindh Elementary School on Reinickendorfer Straße took place on September 10, 2025. Among those present were the district mayor Stefanie Remlinger and the district councilor Benjamin Fritz. This new opening is the result of a long history that was marked by challenges such as massive mold infestation in the old school building. According to berlin.de, the old building at Guineastrasse 17 was closed in 2022 after the mold problems became more serious.

The new compartment school offers space for up to 576 students and includes a barrier-free school building with various specialist rooms, a cafeteria and a sports hall. The sports hall was already used for physical education classes last year. During the construction period, the teachers and students had to be taught at an alternative location at Saatwinkler Damm 42. This came after approximately 750 students were relocated due to mold infestation, which forced the entire student body to vacate the old damaged building in the summer of 2023. Many parents decided to withdraw their children from school, which made the situation even more difficult, as [berliner-kurier.de](https://www.berliner-kurier.de/berlin/berlins-knowneste-schimmel-schule-die-anna-lindh-grundschule-im-wedding-soll-abriss- Werden-li.298127) reports.

The challenge of demolition

The Mitte district is planning to demolish the listed Anna Lindh primary school on Guineastrasse, which resulted in an application to the State Monuments Office. The idea is that this demolition will make room for a new building, although this could take several years. The Senator for Culture Klaus Lederer must make the final decision on demolition or renovation. The mold problem has been known since 2017, but various smaller measures to contain it have not yet been successful. The district expects resistance from the State Monuments Office, and a decision is hoped for before the new election in February 2024.

The ongoing problems have caused follow-up costs: every year, around 6.6 million euros in rental costs are incurred for the replacement location. Negotiations are still ongoing about transportation costs for fifth and sixth grade students, which increases the financial burden. The condition at the old location is depressing; The mold in the basement rooms is so bad that they can only be entered wearing protective suits. [berliner-kurier.de](https://www.berliner-kurier.de/berlin/berlins-knowneste-schimmel-schule-die-anna-lindh-grundschule-im-wedding-soll-abriss- Werden-li.298127) states that a renovation could take up to eight years and a new building would cost around 60 million euros.

Berlin school building offensive

The opening of the new location is part of Berlin's comprehensive school building offensive, which also includes a modular type program for primary schools. This program was launched in 2018 and aimed to accelerate the construction process through planned modularity solutions. Architects from the Bruno Fioretti Marquez GmbH office won the implementation competition in order to ensure efficient implementation of the spatial program, as berlin.de describes. The concept is intended to ensure that new school buildings are built quickly and with high architectural quality.

The challenge that the students and the district office have experienced during this time cannot be ignored. Nevertheless, the opening of the new school location is a ray of hope and at the same time an important step towards overcoming past problems. The district mayor and district councilor have spoken positively about the progress and the next steps now that the evil of the mold story is finally a thing of the past.