Berlin: What will happen to Tegel Aiport when BBI opens in 2011?

Berliners remember very well when end of 2008 the last plane departed from Tempelhof airport. The idea is to make the new international (and former Eastern-Berliner airport) Schönefeld the sole commercial airport of Berlin. Tegel is still open, but Schönefeld is scheduled already for October 2011. What then? Another airport closing without concept for the time after? Another Tempelhof-like disaster?

Just a quick reminder of what happened with Tempelhof:
Tempelhof was a historical airport from 1923 (Lufthansa was founded there in 1926). It was the world's first airport with an own subway station and home to an amazing architecture. This history is very dear to all Berliners (more on that on Wikipedia). The municipality had 18 years (after reunification) to decide what to do with this airport. It closed (against many protests from the citizens) and there was no concept, although more than one investor had presented ideas (that would have even created jobs!). Lately the city hall is thinking about a new park around the protected and biggest coherent building in Europe. A park. Great idea. Yes, saving the planet is important, but you should not forget that Berlin is the poorest German city. The unemployment rate is 13.4 % versus 7.8% all over Germany (as of Jan 2010). One forth of all German welfare recipients live in Berlin. The city needs investors but the current mayor Klaus Wowereit is not very entrepreneur-friendly and said more than once that Berlin is "poor but sexy".

So for what do Berliners have to prepare regarding Tegel?
Tegel was built during the Berlin Airlift in 1948 in the at that time French sector of West-Berlin. When the new airport of Schönefeld (then BBI - Berlin-Brandenburg International) opens, the countdown for the last 6 months of Tegel will start. Today the municipality issued the press-release that they have started with the changes in the land-use plan. From now on every citizen, company and also neighboring municipality can have a say.
According to senator Junge-Reihe this area of 460 ha is supposed to become home to research and industry for "future technologies" (whatever that might be). She adds that Berlin needs jobs in the environmental sector. The aim would be to create a "sensible balance between landscape, constructural development and surface reserves". The development would be from the inside out: all the sealed surfaces and existing buildings should be used first and at short term. The free areas are supposed to connect with the existing developed areas in the vicinity and partially become available for recreation. Finally she plans to keep a reserve for technology companies to be developed on demand.

So far so good. It seems that this time the senate has a concept. Germany is one of the most environmental countries in the world (2 countries met the Kyoto parameters: Luxemburg and Germany). Saving the planet and securing jobs is the biggest challenge that we are facing all around the world to fight against climate change. Maybe Berlin can show how. If the senate sticks to this concept. Why I doubt this? There are elections in fall 2011 right when BBI opens... Everything can change again.

Junge-Reiher belongs to the SPD, the party of mayor Wowereit. His future is uncertain. Berlin is broke and in my aspects this is a home-made disaster. As said before, Wowereit is not very entrepreneur-friendly. He never receives personally potential investors that would bring jobs, no wonder many of those companies end up close to Munich where potential investors are warmly received.