Expansion -Block-Expansion
development of Potsdamer from the view of city context
 

Potsdamer Platz is a central point in Berlin with a long history and grand urban aspirations.

The main square and surrounding district were extensively re-developed from 1994 - 1998.

The development was one of Europe’s biggest  urban construction projects and was planned

by a team of international architects under the leadership of Renzo Piano.

I am pretty impressed by the development of a  Potsdamer Platz over two century.How this
area develops somehow represents the history of human activities .As a architect,our design 

shape the  interaction between people and surroundings. I am also very interested in the new

urban design of Postdamer Platz by Renzo,how it link the present with the history and how it
connects the city.

 

Potsdamer Platz is a microcosm of Berlin, its history reflecting the social forces affecting the

city over the past four centuries.The area was first defined in the 17th century when a new city 

wall was built to line the western edge of a freshly built public square. By 1831, the Potsdamer

Gate area was a tourist center with a railroad station,hotels, and restaurants. With the NationaL
 Socialist's rise to power,many houses  houses were demolished to make way for a huge  area to

house monumental buildings for the Nazi party, state, and businesses.Even though many houses

also destroyed by allied air raids,life quickly came back, with stores and restaurants opening But

with the Berlin Wall  constructed in August of 1961,separating north-south through Potsdamer

Platz. All the buildings east of the wall were cleared to give border guards open fields.The fall

of Berlin wall  in 1990  brought great hope for urban progress and opportunity to connect north

and south together. The urban design by Renzo Piano ,in the end,primarily shaped the new
development.

The most successful truly part of the public areas of the district are two public plazas that site
adjacent to one another at the heart of Potsdamer Plataz. This two piazza points out the main

entrance of underground train station .And the piazza also serves as the space for public ,political

and social activities .

  

However,I hold the opinion when most paths lead to the covered mall,those buildings serve to
remove people from the actual  public spaces into indoor streets.As it is now ,the privatised public
 space dominates the area.Except from this ,overall ,it is a successful urban design define the
 commercial and entertainment sector of Berlin.