Dispute over university property in Berlin-Dahlem: Container village or new building?

Dispute over university property in Berlin-Dahlem: Container village or new building?

The wasting property on Thielallee 63 in Berlin-Dahlem, which is intended as a potential location for a container village to accommodate 260 refugees, encounters resistance, in particular on the part of the Free University. The university intends to build a building for teaching and research instead of the container village. The communication between the Berlin refugee coordinator and the FU Chancellor showed disagreement regarding temporary refugee accommodation on the site.

The President of the FU Berlin, Günter Ziegler, expressed resentment that the Senate plans were promoted without consulting with the university management. However, the university had already made space for the temporary accommodation of refugees in the past and pointed out that the site will be required for its own construction projects from 2023.

The FU suggests that vacant buildings of the Federal Real Estate Institute nearby nearby could be used as alternative areas for refugee accommodation. The refugee representative Broemme emphasizes that the accommodation of refugees on wastelanding land is a suitable solution as long as these areas cannot be used for any other.

At the end of March, the Senate decided to build 16 other container villages in various districts in Berlin in order to counter the continued lack of living space for refugees. Despite some resistance in the choice of location, it was possible to develop an overall concept for the construction of the additional container villages. The planned locations mainly focus on the eastern part of the city, which could lead to a further shift in the population history.

The Freedom University Berlin is accused of crumbling its “Woke facade” on the Internet because it speaks against the temporary refugee accommodation. Critics question the university's decision and refer to the possible support of refugees instead of the planned construction project. The discourse online illustrates the controversial debate about priorities and responsibilities in dealing with refugee accommodation in Berlin.