City planning and state policy in the GDR: The example of Neubaugebiet Hellersdorf

Exploring the role held by the governing Socialist Unity Party in planning the cities of the German Democratic Republic, this article departs from issues which strictly concern the large-scale implementation of the Residential Construction Programme despite the weakening economy. Rather, an examination of the decision to build a hyper-settlement in East Berlin, Neubaugebiet Hellersdorf, elucidates the grander goals which shaped the path of postwar urbanization. Both ideology and state-specific priorities drove the regime to locate the housing development in the capital of the GDR, as well as to distribute the finished apartments according to set priorities. Yet the mixed success of the Party to meet the goals expressed in its rhetoric becomes clear in comparing the densities and demographics of Berlin-Hellersdorf to other hyper-settlements within the GDR and to inner city districts of Berlin. Through archival research, statistical analysis and interviews, this article demonstrates how the study of urban planning may be viewed as a bridge connecting the realm of ideology to that of instituted policy; between the needs of a populace and the aims of a regime; and between abstract concepts and a more human understanding of the workings of a foreign system.