Uni in Berlin-Dahlem argues with Senate for refugee accommodation

Uni in Berlin-Dahlem argues with Senate for refugee accommodation

The property on Thielallee 63 in Berlin-Dahlem, which is currently being used as a parking lot, is to be converted into a container village for 260 refugees according to the Senate's plans. However, this decision encounters resistance, especially from the Free University. The university plans to build a building for teaching and research there and feels over the Senate plans. The President of the University, Günter Ziegler, emphasizes that the university management was not integrated into the decision and knew nothing about prior consultation.

In the past, the Free University of Berlin has already helped people fled by providing temporary emergency shelters. However, the university states that after 2023 it urgently needs the area for its own construction work. The university suggests that vacant buildings of the Federal Real Estate Districts nearby as an alternative accommodation options.

Berlin's refugee coordinator Broemme is currently examining urban open spaces to build refugee accommodation. He emphasizes that a temporary accommodation of refugees on the fallow university property would make sense as long as the planned construction work has not yet started. Nevertheless, questions regarding nature conservation still have to be clarified. At the end of March, the Senate decided to build 16 other container villages because the need for living space for refugees is still high and the existing structures are not sufficient.