- Architectural competition for new synagogue starts
The planned reconstruction of the synagogue on Fraenkelufer in Berlin-Kreuzberg is taking another step forward. "A Europe-wide architectural competition has been launched for the project," said the building commissioner Engelbert Lütke Daldrup to the German Press Agency. The competition aims to determine the specific architectural and design form of the project, which is to include a community and cultural center as well as a kindergarten with 45 places. It will run until the end of the year, and a jury is expected to decide on the winning design in the second half of January 2025.
The old synagogue on Fraenkelufer, which could accommodate up to 2,000 people and was one of the largest in Berlin, was opened in 1916 and largely destroyed by the Nazis during the pogroms on November 9, 1938. The remaining ruins were demolished in the 1950s. The initiative for the new building comes from the SPD faction leader in the House of Representatives, Raed Saleh.
The process, which began in 2017/2018 and has had its ups and downs, is being accompanied and driven forward by an association and a committee, whose members include representatives from politics, business, and society. The most prominent member is Friede Springer, the majority shareholder of the Axel Springer media house ("Bild", "Welt").
Many hurdles have already been overcome. In 2022, former airport chief Lütke Daldrup joined as an honorary building commissioner, and under his leadership, important planning and approval steps have been successfully completed. Recently, it was about a so-called needs program in which the responsible authorities confirmed the planned spatial structure and its use. The architectural competition as the next step is a challenge, said Lütke Daldrup. It is about combining the functionality of a modern community and cultural center with the memory of the predecessor building and its history.
The plot of land belongs to the state of Berlin, and currently, a smaller synagogue is used by a Jewish community in the immediate vicinity. The new Jewish center is to provide space for culture and education, neighborhood and inter-cultural encounters, celebrations, events - and for a kindergarten. The project is also intended to send a signal of diversity and tolerance and against anti-Semitism.
Lütke Daldrup hopes for construction to begin in 2026. The initiators have always estimated the costs at around 20 to 25 million euros, and according to Lütke Daldrup, this approximate framework has not changed. Up to 24 million euros have been earmarked for the project in various investment packages of the state of Berlin. Donations will also be added.
Lütke Daldrup hopes that after the architectural competition and further planning procedures, the building permit will be issued in 2026. "If everything goes very well, we could lay the foundation stone at the end of 2026."
The synagogue reconstruction project aims to incorporate a religious space, as the new building will serve as a community and cultural center for the Jewish community. The initiative for this diverse and inclusive project is driven by a strong commitment against anti-Semitism.
