Uni in Berlin-Dahlem in the conflict: container village or new building?

Uni in Berlin-Dahlem in the conflict: container village or new building?

The property on Thielallee 63 in Berlin-Dahlem should in future serve as a place for a container village to accommodate 260 refugees, according to the Senate's plans. However, this encounters resistance, especially on the part of the Free University, which actually wants to build a building for teaching and research on the site. As early as winter 2014 and 2015, the university offered support for refugee people with unbureaucratic. Despite its basic commitment, the university pointed out that it urgently needed the property in question from 2023 for its own construction projects.

The Free University feels surprised by the Senate's plans, since the president only learned from the newspaper about the projects. In addition, the university pointed out that there would be alternative vacant buildings in the immediate vicinity, which were already used as refugee accommodation until 2017. Despite the need for renovation and extensive construction planning of the university, these buildings would be suitable for the temporary accommodation of refugees.

The special representative for refugee questions from the Senate, Broemme, emphasizes the urgency of refugee accommodation and recognizes the need for additional living space for refugees. At the end of March, 16 other container villages decided by the Senate because the existing need for accommodation is not sufficiently covered. Despite resistance in various parts of the city, including in distinguished areas such as Steglitz-Zehlendorf, there are efforts to build further accommodations in order to improve the situation of the refugees and to relieve the overcrowded emergency accommodations.