YOUR FORUM FOR PLAY, SPORTS UND LEISURE AREAS
The futurologist Robert Jungk describes the connection between living environment and well-being as follows:
"We now have the chance to learn from the mistakes of the past and build settlements in harmony with nature and in line with human needs. If we want to prevent increasing neuroses and mental unhappiness amidst material prosperity, we should give more people a home where they feel comfortable and from which they do not need to escape.
Thus, open space design in residential areas should counteract anonymity and promote the interaction between different generations and counteract a frequent change of housing. Many homebuilders and flat owners have already become aware of the problem and decided to invest in a more attractive living environment.
The Charlottenburg Building Cooperative in Berlin shows how this can work. It is one of the oldest cooperatives in Berlin. They affectionately call themselves "Charlotte", in short form. Founded as early as 1907, the cooperative has experienced the German Empire, the Weimar Republic, Nazi dictatorship, wars, destruction, the economic miracle, erection of the Wall and reunification. Since its foundation in 1907 when there were 572 members, the number of members has now increased to almost 14,000 members. However, the "Charlotte" flats are no longer to be found exclusively in Charlottenburg but also in five other districts of Berlin. Many things have changed in the 113 years of "Charlotte's" history. However, there is one thing which is still the same: It is the individual who is the focus of attention while, at the same time, every member can rely on a strong community. Thus, many members are unselfishly committed to the cooperative family - a social neighbourhood - across generations and without intercultural barriers. The six "Charlotte | Treffs (meeting points)" are as colourful and different as the housing estates and the people who live in them. Both then and today Charlotte's aim was and still is to guarantee good living quality in an attractive residential environment at affordable prices for its members.
Above all, the living environment includes green spaces which represent the quality of "outdoor living". It is the semi-public area which is available to all tenants for common use. Many green spaces have already been upgraded by the "Charlotte" cooperative or are at least in a state of planning. Some have been partially renovated and others completely redesigned. The "Charlotte" cooperative is constantly creating new solutions tailored to the needs of the residents in close cooperation with landscape architects. The existing green framework is always treated with great sensitivity while at the same time new greenery is planted. Playgrounds and their surroundings are also highly valued as meeting places and places of communication. Wherever possible, resistant wooden materials are used for the relevant furnishings.
This should be demonstrated by the following two examples: Both residential courtyards were planned by landscape architect Katharina Niproschke and furnished with playground equipment from SIK-Holz.
The first residential courtyard is located in General-Barby Straße in the district of Berlin-Reinickendorf. Behind the rows of four-storey residential buildings there is an intact green belt with old trees and small tenant gardens. Between the tenant gardens there is a larger open space with benches, games and exercise facilities. The old furnishings had got long in the tooth and had to be renewed. Inspired by the surroundings of an intact community garden colony, landscape architect Katharina Niproschke designed a new playground focused on "young vegetables", in close cooperation with the Berlin office of the company SIK-Holz. The new playground looks like a large wooden vegetable patch between two large birch trees. It is divided into different zones in order to enable age-appropriate play. In addition, there is a fenced sand area for small children up to three years of age with sand and water games and a small garden hut for role-playing. The lovingly designed fence with applications and sculptures from the gardener's realm separates the toddler area from the more activity-focused play equipment for older children. The small children can thus watch the play of the older ones from a safe position. Outside the fenced garden colony, various animal sculptures invite the children to jump, bounce, swing and do role-plays games together on three jumping boards designed as a "lettuce head" and a "strawberry", a "chili rocker" and a "vegetable swing". For older children up to approx. 12 years of age, the central "allotment garden play combination" offers many activity incentives from climbing and balancing to shimmying and sliding. For these areas, wood chips were chosen to build the base. A small road network of paved paths with small traffic signs runs around the play areas. It is here where the children can learn how to move and behave in the world outside the playground with everything that "rolls". Rolling can be continued in the adjacent area, which also offers a table tennis table and a basketball hoop as a field of activity for young people. All those who do not play but want to watch, talk or simply be out in the fresh air can sit on the numerous benches available in this area.
The second residence is located in Kohlrauschstraße in Berlin-Charlottenburg. This residential courtyard is open to the public. The former equipment of the play area consisted of a playground for small children, which did not meet the needs of all age groups. Thus, landscape architect Katharina Niproschke and Dr. Gabriele Holst created a new design with naturally changing surfaces and SIK-Holz play equipment made of naturally grown robinia wood which divides the area into different play zones that look like curved ribbons. The play area begins in the rear area with dense planting and a meadow area. The adjacent toddler area which consists of a playhouse, mud area and mini swing and a sand play area. In the middle of the area there is a large maple tree with a generous seating platform around the tree. A lower situated "green river" of willow grass separates the toddler play area from the play area for older children with two bridges of different difficulty levels connecting these two areas. The play area for older children is also divided by two different surfaces, as the existing swing needs a cushioning surface. Here, wood chips were used as a natural fall protection, followed by another meadow band. Between these two areas runs a varied balancing system of fixed and movable elements. The posts are partly designed as grasses or bulrushes. This enhances the overall impression of a small river landscape.
These two examples show how residential courtyards can be transformed into small green oases. Living in the middle of the city can also be living in the green and playing in nature.
