“One day, ten construction sites”: under this motto, the ten development projects in HafenCity opened their construction fences on Sunday, 4 September 2022, giving the more than 2,000 participating visitors exclusive views of the most exciting construction projects in the young district on the Elbe. In addition to guided tours on or around the construction sites, there was an exciting entertainment programme, especially for families – with children’s amusement and various hands-on activities. Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier also offered a very special view over its very special construction fence, which not only protects the construction site, but is also the longest curated work of art in northern Germany with the 385-metre-long #UNUEBERSEEBAR art installation.
It has been over 20 years since the first sod was turned and the foundation stone laid in HafenCity. Since 2008, HafenCity has officially been a Hamburg district – one of currently 104 in total. It will certainly take a few more years until HafenCity is completed. Then there will be 7,500 flats for around 15,000 people and up to 45,000 jobs. With 85 of a total of 140 projects already completed, HafenCity has long since become a new part of Hamburg. And even where the construction cranes are still turning today, life will move in over the next few years – for example in the form of flats, offices as well as entertainment, shopping and gastronomy facilities.
Interested visitors were able to see this for themselves for a whole day at the new edition of the “HafenCity InSights” event. During guided tours, they got to know the visions and special features behind the various current building projects such as BE STRANDKAI Quartier, EDGE ElbSide Hamburg, EDGE HafenCity Hamburg, Elbtower, Marktplatz der Manufakturen, Null Emissionshaus, roots and Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier of course. In a way, all these projects stand for the Hanseatic interpretation of tomorrow’s urban development. In this respect, the term “Discovery Tour” fits very well for what awaited the visitors on their tours with the experts on the other side of the construction fence through the high and civil engineering buildings of HafenCity, on 360-degree tours or at the various knowledge stations on the subject of construction. All in all, the “HafenCity InSights” event offered a diverse programme for young and old – including a wide variety of culinary delights.
Backstage at Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier
As one of the largest inner-city construction sites in Europe, visitors were naturally particularly interested in Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier. By spring 2024, a pulsating future place of short distances will be created on 419,000 square metres in the heart of HafenCity, impressively combining all aspects of life – i.e. living, working and leisure.
The Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier showroom on the 7th floor of Sumatrakontor opposite the construction site was the ideal starting point for the numerous interested visitors who wanted to get to know the new quarter with its 14 individual buildings better. The second stop on the 70-minute tour was the DC Developments showroom at Tokiostrasse 2, where visitors were given a detailed insight into two very special residential concepts in Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier: Eleven Decks & THE LYTE. As a final highlight, they went up to the sixth floor of the 25hours Hotel. Up here, with a view of the extraordinary quarter, the Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier team explained to the many interested visitors the development of the construction site from the groundbreaking ceremony in 2017 until today.
Anyone who missed the “HafenCity InSights 2022” can, of course, contact the showroom afterwards. There, visitors can have the showroom team explain to them what unique things are being built on the opposite side of the street using a model of the Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier.
