International Congress of the Council for European Urbanism

30 Years: The European City – Review and Prospects

September 8-10, 2005
Berlin, Germany

Programme as of May, 2005
(Speakers and titles are subject to change)

Introduction

The Congress “30 Years: The European City“ will throw open the topic of Urban Development into the centre of debate. This topic influences politics and economics, as well the general public. Urban Development reflects the structural transition in society, but must also meet head-on the problems of sprawl and demands for sustainability

The Congress will debate the following subjects:

-What are the traditions and perspectives of European Urbanism?
-How will European Urbanism continue to develop?
-What are today’s trends, Best-Practice Methods and their possibilities for success or failure?

The Congress “30 Years: The European City” will examine these issues in two parts. The first part uses Berlin as an example of structural change in Urban Development; what has happened in the past and how it is adapting for the future. During the second part, projects will be presented which show what is happening internationally. The exchange of ideas and information is more important than ever, not only within but especially beyond European borders.

The organizer of the Congress is the Council for European Urbanism (CEU). The CEU is a European network that promotes the improvement of European urbanism through international cooperation and exchange of ideas and experience. The CEU was formed in Brussels and officially founded in Stockholm in 2003. The Council strives to improve the quality of urban design, encourages the strengthening of local identity, socially-conscious city redevelopment, and sustainable development, all within the perception of the city and region as a whole.

The CEU is supported by many partners and the Congress is under the patronage of Manfred Stolpe, Federal Minister for Transport, Building, and Housing.

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The Congress is directed toward:
- Politicians
- Developers
- Business leaders
- Private initiative groups
- Experts in the fields of urbanism including architects, planners, traffic engineers, sociologists, etc.
- Citizens who are concerned about the future of their towns and neighbourhoods

Purpose and Goals of the Congress

The European city is facing grave challenges: de-industrialization, declining and aging populations, social polarization, suburbanization, the rise of edge-cities, and declining resources. The city has developed beyond its borders into a city-region. New players have entered the scene; previously, city, state and national governments mainly directed city development, now increasingly the private sector determines the direction development will take. Taking into account these factors, how will cities adapt to these challenges without losing their inherent strengths as centres for economic activity and initiatives, social integration/interaction and historical-cultural identity? For the discussion about the future of the European city, a critical analysis of the experiences and traditions of European urban development is necessary. In addition, ways must be found to overcome these hurdles and build bridges of cooperation between politicians, experts, private investors, and citizen groups, not only within each country but also between the various European countries themselves and beyond.

In 1975, the European Council initiated one of the most successful urban development programmes in history: “ A Future for our Past, European Architectural Heritage”. This campaign was not a top-down initiative; instead it brought together a broad-based coalition of politicians, private investors, experts, and citizens groups. Their goal was not only the protection of the built, cultural inheritance, but to rehabilitate the historical essence of the city by rejecting modern city planning theories and methods. Thus the concept “European City” was reborn, as a common inheritance that must be protected, a tradition that must be carefully developed, and serve as an example for a better city.

This campaign helped to re-awaken, re-establish, and re-interpret the principles of traditional European city planning including: the protection and revitalization of historical villages, towns, and cities; careful conversion and re-use of old buildings; the integration of new buildings into the urban fabric; reconstruction of destroyed buildings under certain conditions; implementation of traffic restrictions and the promotion of pedestrian usage; reclaiming of public open space, encouraging mixed-use development; recognition and respect for social needs and promotion of social and economic integration; participation of citizen initiative groups, integration of the city’s revitalization in regional planning concepts; securing agreed goals through binding legislation; and not least the cooperation between the public and private sectors.

Since 1975, the term “European City” is no longer just an academic concept. The “European City” has since become an example that reaches beyond borders, an example that must be continually renewed, protected and differentiated. A wide variety of groups and persons from different backgrounds have contributed to the success of this campaign during the last 30 years. The International Congress of the CEU will not only look back on the traditional aspects of European city planning, but toward the future as well on two levels: Berlin will be presented on the first day as an example of the struggle for a new direction in urban development after “Modernism”, and on the second day experiences and perspectives from other European cities will be discussed.

International Congress of the Council for European Urbanism
Berlin, Germany

Pre-Congress Programme

Thursday, September 8, 2005


10:00- 17:00 Bus Trip to Potsdam (in German and English)
Includes visit to Park Sanssouci, Historical City Centre, and Kirschsteigfeld
Guide: Gerd Unger, limited to 40 persons.
Meeting Point: Hilton Hotel Lobby, Mohrenstrasse 30, Mitte

10:00- 17:00 Bus Tour: The Socialist Legacy (in German)
Includes Alexanderplatz, Stalinallee, Nikolaiviertel, Unter den Linden, Gendarmenmarkt
Guide: Ulla Haspel, limited to 40 persons.
Meeting Point: Hilton Hotel Lobby, Mohrenstrasse 30, Mitte

10:00- 17:00 Bus Tour: The New Suburb of Karow-North (in German and English)
Guide: Susanne Klar and Miller Stevens, limited to 40 persons
Meeting Point: Hilton Hotel Lobby, Mohrenstrasse 30, Mitte

13:00- 16:00 Walking Tour: The Wall (in English and German)
Includes Checkpoint Charlie, Potsdamer Platz, Leipziger Platz, Brandenburg Gate,
Pariser Platz, and the Reichstag.
Guide: Duane Phillips and Wolfgang Serbser, limited to 25 persons
Meeting Point: Sale e Tabacchi, Kochstrasse 18, Kreuzberg

13:00- 16:00 Walking Tour: Spandauer Vorstadt Area (in German and English)
Includes Hackescher Markt, Hackesche Höfe, Sophienstrasse, Oranienburger Strasse,
Synogoge, Tacheles
Guide: Karl-Heinz Maschmeier, limited to 25 persons.
Meeting Point: Under the Arch at Tacheles, Oranienburger Strasse

13:00- 17:00 Bus Tour: Plattenbau Radical Chic (in German and English)
Includes visits to the best and worst examples of the rehabilitation of the pre-fabricated
housing estates in the East; Ahrensfelder Terraces, Marzahn and Hellersdorf Centres.
Guide: Heike Liebmann, Limited to 40 persons.
Meeting Point: Hilton Hotel Lobby, Mohrenstrasse 30, Mitte

13:00-17:00 Walking Tour: The New Government Area in the Spreebogen (in German)
After Reunification, it was decided to move the government from Bonn back to Berlin.
The Spreebogen was the site for the international competition and the results can now
judged in built form. Includes the Reichstag, Chancellor’s Building, Swiss Embassy
Extension, and various government office buildings.
Guide: Annalie Schön, limited to 25 persons.
Meeting Point: Brandenburg Gate

13:00-17:00 Walking Tour: Potsdamer Platz (in English)
Includes DaimlerChrysler, Sony Center, Beisheim Center, Leipziger Platz.
Limited to 25 persons.
Meeting Point: to be announced.

19:00-open CEU Pre-event Committee Meetings and Salons:

More Information: www.ceunet.de




International Congress of the Council for European Urbanism
Berlin, Germany


Friday, September 9, 2005

Location: Bundesministerium für Verkehr, Bauen, und Wohnungswesen,
Invalidenstrasse 44
11030 Berlin
Room: Lichthof



Berlin: An Experiment in European Urban Development

Berlin was and is recognised internationally as an example for the rehabilitation of the European city. The International Building Exhibition 1984-87 as well as the large development projects since the fall of the Berlin Wall has played major roles. Many actors were involved in this rehabilitation, and only through broad-based discussions could results be achieved. The first day of the Congress will present the Berlin experience through the perception of the different participants involved. Discussed will be why certain projects were successful or unsuccessful due to their design, economic, social and political aspects. Also analysed will be the problems that have only now come to light after the passage of time, and what we can learn for the future.

Chairperson Morning Session: Ulla Luther, CEU Germany

9:00 AM Welcoming Statement Tilo Braune, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of
Transport, Building, and Housing.

Welcoming Statement Klaus Wowereit, Mayor of Berlin

Opening Statement Susan Parham, CEU United Kingdom
Chairperson CEU Europe

9:30 AM Congress Introduction Dr. Harald Kegler, Secretary CEU Germany
Deputy Chairman CEU Europe

10:00 AM An Overview: Berlin in Context of European City Development
Prof. Dr. Harald Bodenschatz, City Planner, Chairman CEU Germany,
Steering Committee CEU Europe

10:30 AM Coffee Break

11:00 AM Review: Good-Bye to Modernist Urban Development in Divided Berlin

West-Berlin: International Building Exhibition (IBA) 1984-87, Careful City Renewal
Erhart Pfotenhauer, City Planner, CEU Germany

West-Berlin: International Building Exhibition (IBA) 1984-87, Critical Reconstruction
Prof. Dr. Vittorio Magnago Lampugnani, Architect, ETH Zürich

The goals of the IBA were the “careful renewal” of the poorest, dilapidated areas of
Berlin, and the “critical reconstruction” of areas where complete blocks had been
eradicated by the war. With this, Berlin rejected 1950’s and 1960’s Modernist
city planning theories. What were the innovations, and where were the limits?




East-Berlin: After Modernism: Projects for the Historical City Centre.
Dr. Günter Stahn, Architect

Unknown internationally was the fact that the centre of East-Berlin was, although subject
to the constraints imposed by industrial production techniques, developed using non-
modernist city planning practices. The rebuilding of the Nikolaiviertel and the beginning
of the reconstruction of the Friedrichstadt area acted as the beginning of a new phase in
planning in the East. What was special and unique to this non-modernist planning in the
communist German Democratic Republic?

12:00 noon From Divided to United Berlin
Discussion Leader: Prof. Dr. Uwe Altrock, CEU Germany

Statements:
Dorothee Dubrau, Councillor of the Department for Building and Construction, District of
Berlin-Centre.
Florian Mausbach, President of Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning
Prof. Thomas Sieverts, City Planner

A gold-rush atmosphere overtook Berlin aftre Re-unification. However, a financial crises
and economic restructuring lead quickly to a return to reality. How was the development
of Berlin in the context of European Urbanism affected?

1:00 PM Lunch



Chairman Afternoon Session: Prof. Hildebrand Machleidt, C.E.U. Germany

2:00 PM The New Berlin: City Development since the Wall: Results and Conclusions
Dr. Hans Stimmann, Director of Berlin Senate Administration for Urban Planning

Berlin experienced massive development in the years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The
City-Centre, abandoned industrial sites, the huge pre-fabricated housing estates, and the
suburbs were all affected. With retrospect, what are the urbanistic and political
repercussions today?

2:30 PM Development in the Centre of Re-united Berlin

Potsdamer Platz:
Dr. Hans-Jürgen Ahlbrecht, Managing Director, DaimlerChrysler Immobilien GmbH
Christoph Sattler, Architect. Winner of 1st Potsdamer Platz competition.
Prof. Hans Kollhoff, Architect, ETH Zürich

The area known as Potsdamer Platz was the first mega-development after the wall fell.
Here is where the debate was fought over the direction city planning and urban
develment would take. Through the competition process, the principles of the “European
City” were able to win out in theory, but did they do so in reality?


3:00 PM Hackescher Markt
Dr. Hartwig Dieser, Coordinating Office for the Support of City Revitalization in Berlin
Gisbert Dreyer, Project Developer
Uschka Thierfelder, Citizens Representation Group, District of Spandauer Vorstadt


The revitalized Hackische Market belongs to the most important but least known
successes of the new developments in the city centre. Is it in fact too successful?

3:30 PM Discussion

4:00 PM Coffee Break



4:30 PM City Edge and City Region Berlin

Post-Reunification Redevelopment of the East German Pre-Fabricated Housing Estates:
Dr. Heike Liebmann, IRS, CEU Germany

Huge sums were invested in improving the huge housing estates on the edges of East
Berlin since 1989. Was it worth it?


5:00 PM Regional Park Berlin-Brandenburg:
Prof. Undine Giseke, Landscape Architect, CEU Germany

During the 1990’s, the region around Berlin followed the trend and established a
regional-park concept whose goal was to develop the landscape and the built
environment parallel with each other. How can such a concept be continually realized?

5:15 PM Kirschsteigfeld: Potsdam’s New Suburb
Christoph Kohl, Architect, CEU Germany

The housing estate Kirschsteigfeld South-East of Potsdam belongs to the most ambitious
post-wall projects. However, the planned offices and businesses have not come to
Kirschsteigfeld. What is its present and future?

5:30 PM Discussion

6:00 PM A View to the Future: Urban Development from the Political Perspective Berlin 2020
Ingeborg Junge-Reyer, Senator for Urban Development

6:20 PM Urban Development in Berlin: Strengths and Weaknesses, a Summary.
Discussion Leader: Dr. Robert Kaltenbrunner, Federal Office for Building and Regional
Planning

Statements:
Javier Cenicacelaya, CEU Spain, Steering Committee CEU Europe
John Norquist, President CNU, USA
Manfred Sinz, Regional Planner, Federal Minister of Transport, Building, and Housing
Dr. Hans Stimmann, Director of Berlin Senate Administration for Urban Planning
Heinz Tibbe, City Planner, CEU Germany

7:00 PM Remarks
Prof. Dr. Harald Bodenschatz, President CEU Germany

8:00 PM Reception at:

Senatsverwaltung für Stadtentwicklung
Behrenstrasse 42
10117 Berlin
Room: Lichthof

Welcoming Statement: Dr. Hans Stimmann, Director of Berlin Senate Administration for
Urban Planning

Welcoming Statement: Monika Kunz, Head of the City Building Department, Ditzingen,
Director of the SRL

Welcoming Statement: Kasper Kraemer, President Association of German Architects

Welcoming Statement: Sigurd Trommer, German Association of Cities


International Congress of the Council for European Urbanism
Berlin, Germany

Saturday, September 10, 2005

Location: Bundesministerium für Verkehr, Bauen, und Wohnungswesen
Invalidenstrasse 44
11030 Berlin
Room: Lichthof



New Perspectives in City Development: Europe and Beyond


The second day of the Congress will focus on the exchange of experiences at the international level and will take a look at the future. What are the tendencies in urban development in Europe and elsewhere? What are the Best-Practice projects? What role can the C.E.U. play? The goal is to identify the strengths and weaknesses of current urban development as perceived by the wide spectrum of the participants involved: politicians, developers, experts, and the citizens themselves.


Chairman Morning Session: Prof. Wolfgang Christ, CEU Germany

9:00 AM Welcoming Statement: Urban Development in Germany seen in a European
Context.
Dr. Manfred Stolpe, Federal Minister of Transport, Building, and Housing

9:30 AM Sustainable Communities: Experience in England, Perspectives for Europe
Rt. Hon. John Prescott, Deputy Prime Minister, United Kingdom

10:00 AM Council for European Urbanism: A Programme and Network for Reform
Audun Engh, CEU Norway, Secretary CEU Europe

10:30 AM Brussels: The Impossible Capital of Europe
Pierre Laconte, CEU Belgium, Steering Committee CEU Europe

11:00 AM Coffee Break

11:30 AM Perspectives in Sweden: Between Baltic Corridor and Pre-Fab Conversion
Peter Elmlund, CEU Sweden, Steering Committee CEU Europe

12:00 Noon “Randstad” and New Towns: “Un-Modern” Strategies for the Netherlands
Mieke Bosse, CEU Netherlands
Peter Drijver, CEU Netherlands, Steering Committee CEU Europe

12:30 PM New Urbanism and Modernism
Andres Duany, CNU, USA

13:00 PM Lunch



Chairman Afternoon Session:
Prof. Dr. Michael Krautzberger, Federal Minister of Transport, Building, and Housing


2:00 PM Urban Renaissance in England
George Ferguson, President of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), UK


2:30 PM Project Tel Aviv: Inheritance and Reform
Irit Solzi, Yodan Rofè, Movement for Israeli Urbanism MIU, Isreal

3:00 PM The New Warsaw: City Development Perspectives in Poland
Michal Borowski, City Architect of Warsaw

3:30 PM Bilbao and Lisbon, The Iberian Peninsula Setting the Mark
Jose Baganha, CEU Portugal, Steering Committee CEU Europe
Javier Cenicacelaya, CEU Spain, Steering Committee CEU Europe

4:00 PM CNU Congress XIII in Pasadena: Perspectives for New Urbanism in the USA
John Norquist, President and CEO of the CNU, USA

4:30 PM Coffee Break

5:00 PM Changing Relationships, New Urbanism and Europe
Hank Dittmar, Chair of CNU, Prince’s Foundation, UK

5:30 PM Podium Discussion: Perspectives for CEU

Discussion Leader: Matthew Hardy, CEU UK, Steering Committee CEU Europe

Participants:
Robert Adam, CEU UK
Peter Drijver, CEU Netherlands
Andres Duany, CNU USA
Michael Stojan, CEU Germany
Prof. Gabriele Tagliaventi, CEU Italy
Dr. Hermann Scheer, MdB, EUROSOLAR

7:00 PM Challenges for City Development in Europe, Challenges for the C.E.U.
Dr. Harald Kegler, Secretary CEU Germany, Deputy Chair CEU Europe

7:15 PM Closing Statement
Susan Parham, Chair of CEU Europe

8:00 PM Dinner

Booking

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booking-formular (pdf file)

REGISTRATION:

Hotel: www.meet-in-berlin.com/convention-contingents  Please book yourselfe.

Registrationfee: 275 €, Students 150 €

Registration from June, 1st to August, 8th www.ceunet.de