Market hall IX

Market hall IX Railway market hall ;
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Data
place	Berlin
architect	Hermann Blankenstein , August Lindemann
Construction year	1891
Floor space	3500 m²
Coordinates	52 ° 30 '7.8 " N , 13 ° 25' 53.3" E Coordinates: 52 ° 30 '7.8 " N , 13 ° 25' 53.3" E

The Market IX, also railway market hall called, is a city of 14 former market halls in Berlin , the end of the 19th century in the former districts of Berlin were built. They replaced the open markets in various urban squares and guaranteed better hygienic conditions as well as the efficient supply of the growing population. The market hall IX in the Kreuzberg district was opened in 1891. After economic upward and downward developments in the 20th century, it was used steadily. In the 1990s, large discount grocery stores took over more and more connected sales areas, but the entire listed building deteriorated. Since October 2011 there have been three private operators who have successfully brought the concept of diverse, small-scale offers in the hall back to life. Since 2014, Markthalle IX has hosted the “Stadt, Land, Food” festival every two years.

history

Indoor area during an event, 2015

The closed market hall, which was built according to the standard plans of the town planning officer Hermann Blankenstein with the assistance of the architect August Lindemann , was located in Kreuzberg between Eisenbahnstrasse 42/43 and Pücklerstrasse 34, across the residential area delimited by Wrangelstrasse and Muskauer Strasse. When it opened in 1891, it had a sales area of 3296 m² for 300 small market stalls for all everyday goods .

Some damage at the end of the Second World War could be repaired quickly and soon the first traders were offering their goods again. The problem in the 1950s was that Berliners only got food on grocery cards . So the trade remained quite limited. The Berliner Großmarkt GmbH , founded by the owner, the city of Berlin, to manage the market halls, let more and more space in the hall to discounters. This led to a decline in sales for the smaller dealers; the residents' interest in actual market activity was lost.

In 2009 the initiative "Projektgruppe Markthalle IX" was founded in order to prevent the market hall from being sold and at the same time to revive the market hall structure with modern offers. After the initiators Florian Niedermeier, Bernd Maier and Nikolaus Driessen carried out a collection of signatures to support their idea and, together with the architect Peter Lemburg, had developed a concept for the renovation of this hall in accordance with the listed buildings , they were finally able to conclude the purchase agreement with Großmarkt GmbH in March 2012 . The agreed purchase price of 1.1 million euros was lower than the offer from a major investor, whose plans included the demolition of the historic building and the construction of a modern shopping center with underground parking. However, the Senate was convinced by the concept of a “revitalization of the historic hall as the center of the neighborhood”. The renovation and renovation work took place gradually from summer to late autumn 2011. The redesigned railway market hall was officially inaugurated again on October 1, 2011. The sales area for the market stalls with regional and organic products is given as 2850 m².

In the spring of 2019, the Berlin press reported that the operators of the market hall were processing the lease for the remaining Aldi branch and instead wanted to establish a dm drugstore market in the market hall . Local residents perceive this as the displacement of poorer customers who would not find lower prices anywhere else in the hall. The market hall operators are accused of wanting to make the hall a "hall for everyone" in 2011 with the promise of having bought it at a reduced price from the Berlin Senate and now aligning the hall with events, restaurants and the range of rather expensive products. It has also been criticized that there is hardly a market in the hall five days a week. Many residents of the market hall cannot afford the market hall and are therefore dependent on the cheap offers from Aldi . Kreuzberg initiatives for the market hall therefore call for a “Kiezmarkthalle instead of a luxury food hall”. Its aim is for the market hall to offer a daily, cheap, diverse range of groceries affordable for everyone and for Aldi or a comparable grocer to stay in the hall with similar prices and offers. They demand participation for everyone in the hall. The operators, on the other hand, point out that organic products are a central component of the concept and that, in their view, the low prices at discounters come at the expense of the producers.

Current uses

Heidenpeters brewery serving

Since winter 2011/2012 there has been a weekly market in the hall on Fridays and Saturdays, and since December 2014 also on Tuesdays, with mainly seasonal food offers from Berlin / Brandenburg. Since April 2013 there has been a “Street Food Day” every Thursday. The concept also includes the canteen Neun , which also offers a lunch menu on working days outside of normal market opening times.

Every three months there is a "Naschmarkt", at which small manufacturers offer sweet products from fair trade and organic ingredients.

At the “handmade supermarket”, designers , artists and small fashion labels present and sell their products (jewelry, cosmetics, toys, ceramics, photography, art and also small furniture). The operators of this special market describe the concept as a “shopping forum for products beyond mass production”. There are also cultural events (for example a vintage fashion market or a “Farmer meets Kiez” discussion).

Culinary production companies have been added since 2011: In addition to a barbecue smoker, the Heidenpeters brewery is located in the cellar vaults .

Events

The Berlin-Brandenburg cheesecake competition has been held once a year in the central aisle of the hall since 2012 . Since 2014 there has been the special sausage & beer fair on the first Sunday in February .