Park am Nordbahnhof

Park am Nordbahnhof lies in Berlin's Mitte district, five and a half hectares standing three metres above street level. The height comes from the station that once stood here. The Stettiner Bahnhof opened in 1842 as the terminal for trains to Stettin and Pomerania. Severe war damage and an inconvenient location forced the station's closure in 1952. Demolition took the old building down by 1962. The Wall rose in 1961 and turned the ground into border terrain. The Hinterlandmauer and the death strip ran across it.

A marked line traces where the Wall once stood. The brick wall along Gartenstraße and remnants of the Hinterlandmauer shape the park's character. An archaeological window offers a glimpse into the former underground border installations. A team of Krakow architects and Berlin landscape planners won the 1995 design competition. Grün Berlin GmbH guided the construction from 2004 onwards. Funding troubles stretched the work: the park opened in 2009, reaching full completion in 2019. Their plan preserves the wild growth that emerged after the Wall fell. Birds and small animals find their habitat there, alongside play and sports areas, a high ropes course and beach volleyball courts.

Trees stand scattered across the large meadow, and metal walkways carry you between them. A narrow path follows the S-Bahn's northern section, where you take in the area from trackside.