Volkspark Sterkrade
| Volkspark Sterkrade | ||
|---|---|---|
| Park in Oberhausen | ||
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| Volkspark Sterkrade: pond with fountain | ||
| Basic data | ||
| place | Oberhausen | |
| District | Sterkrade | |
| Created | 1906 | |
| Newly designed | 2015 | |
| Surrounding streets | Brandenburger Strasse Weierstrasse Railway line Oberhausen – Arnhem |
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| Technical specifications | ||
| Parking area | 13.5 ha | |
51 ° 31 '19.9 " N , 6 ° 50' 22.2" E
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The Volkspark Sterkrade in the Oberhausen district of Sterkrade is a local recreation area with an area of 13.5 hectares. The site is not far from Neumarkt and extends 1.5 km along the Oberhausen – Arnhem railway line from Brandenburger Strasse in the south to Weierstrasse in the north . The landscape is characterized by lawns, decorative beds, bushes and trees, a large pond and numerous hiking trails. On the park area there are two playgrounds, an open-air stage and the Volksparkstadion, which was inaugurated in 1927.
He is part of the protected landscape area "Alsbachtal and Volkspark Sterkrade".
history
Where the Volkspark is located today, the oldest, largest and most traditional homestead in Sterkrade used to be - the Schulte-Westhoff domain farm. It was mentioned as early as 1558. With the death of its last owner, the property went to the Gutehoffnungshütte . The construction of the park began when the municipality of Sterkrade had acquired an approximately 10 hectare property in 1906 for 10,000 marks. The reason for this was to bring an easily accessible piece of nature into the inner-city building structure for the hard-working people. The then independent mayor's office of Sterkrade was surrounded by forest areas. As an excursion destination, however, the population preferred the parks in the surrounding towns and communities, such as the Kaisergarten in Oberhausen, the Kaiserberg in Duisburg or the Ruhr Valley near Mülheim , as these were easier to reach and had well-developed paths. Sterkrade was forced to build its own public park. The landscape architect Hugo Koch took on the design .
His concept comes from the American garden and amusement park culture and the ideas of the sports and play movement of that time . In contrast to the English landscape gardens with their representative collections of plants and extensive paths, the focus here should be on the recreational value and the park as a meeting point. The focus here was on sports and play areas for leisure activities, structured and surrounded by a park landscape with trees, bushes and flower beds that invites you to linger. Benches and a restaurant were also a must. A forest stage was built for cultural enjoyment and there were playgrounds with sandboxes and paddling facilities for the little ones.
In 1916 the Volkspark Sterkrade was opened to the public and just a few years later it was expanded in 1920 through the purchase of a plot of land. An area initially used as an ice meadow was converted into a pond about 1 meter deep in 1926. Due to a lack of water, it was initially fed with pumps and then fed by the Alsbach after it was lowered. Until 1960 it could be used for boat trips . Construction of the Volkspark Stadium also began in 1926. In 1927 a gymnasium with a gymnasium and tennis courts was built.
During the Second World War, the Volkspark was destroyed by numerous bomb hits aimed at the railway line. It was not until 1950 that the park could be made accessible again and redesigned by the horticultural department of the city of Oberhausen. In 1958, after the former domain courtyard was demolished, the park was expanded for the last time. This was followed by some renovation and redesign measures. The pond received a pond pump for ventilation sponsored by the Stadtsparkasse in 1984, as the water birds constantly ate the pond plants and the pond was in danger of tipping over. It was replaced by an energy-saving model in 2013. In the mid-1990s, the path along the railway line from Neumarkt to Weiherstraße was partly paved. For financial reasons there was no street lighting.
The last major renovation work took place between 2014 and 2015. With the Multi project, a wind garden was built in 2014 with young people and architecture students from all over the world. After the storm "Ela" , the long neglected park was given a new, barrier-free path design, a fence around the pond and crow-proof rubbish bins as part of the renovation work.
Even today, the Volkspark Sterkrade is a popular meeting place for recreational athletes, walkers and those looking for relaxation. The two playgrounds at the stadium and at the pond are popular with parents with small children during the day. Unfortunately, there are no open-air areas for dogs there and leashes are mandatory to protect wild birds.
Area distribution
The total area of the park of 13.5 hectares is divided as follows:
- approx. 1 ha of forest
- 3 hectares of trees, roses, perennials, summer flowers
- 6 hectares of lawn
- 2 hectares of paths
- 1.6 hectares of water
Others
On an island in the pond there is a sculpture of a life-size lying deer made of cast zinc - the Sterkrad deer. It was made in 1904 and adorned the entrance area of a villa in Sterkrade. After the villa was demolished, the stag was handed over to the city on the occasion of the “100 Years of Oberhausen” festival in 1962 and found a place of honor in the zoo in the Kaisergarten. After its restoration in 2004, the listed sculpture returned to Sterkrade and was installed there in the Volkspark.
