Fritz50: Transformation of the Fritz Heckert area
With the social change in 1989/1990, the conditions of existence in East German new housing estates changed fundamentally, albeit not abruptly. The exodus of residents from the Fritz Heckert area was moderate until the mid-1990s. One of the major landlords was quite surprised when 47 of his flats suddenly became vacant in 1993.
However, the vacancy rate rose steadily in the second half of the 1990s due to the increasing number of housing alternatives in renovated older neighbourhoods, the construction of single-family home estates in the Chemnitz area and the professional reorientation in the West German federal states.
Further information
Note:
The texts were written by the author and historian Norbert Engst. The City of Chemnitz would like to thank him for his valuable support and co-operation.
At the turn of the millennium, a third of the 32,000 flats in the Heckert area were vacant, while a further 30,000 or so flats remained in the urban area without tenants. The situation in the Heckert area was exacerbated by the fact that this residential area was increasingly built to save costs during the GDR era and was not completed at the same time, meaning that urban planning deficits were now coming to light.
This meant that, compared to other cities, the most recent flats had below-average living space, which favoured family tensions. At the same time, there was no commercial or social centre.
The lack of tram line 4 meant that the majority of residents did not have quick access to the city centre. When the Urban Redevelopment Programme East began in 2002, there were around 54,000 residents, around 41 per cent fewer than in the years of peak occupancy in the early 1990s.
The decade between 2002 and 2012 was a major turning point in the lives of many residents. Only a few streets remained in which no buildings were demolished. Citizens' initiatives mediated between urban planning, landlords and residents. Meanwhile, studies at the beginning of the 2000s determined that if the exodus continued and no demolition measures were taken, only a good one million square metres of the 1,627,334 m2 of total living space in the residential area would still be needed by the middle of the decade, meaning that 60 per cent would be empty.
As painful as the demolition of their "own home" was for those affected, the unique opportunity that lay in the transformation of the residential area gradually crystallised. With the introduction of historical neighbourhood names from 1997 instead of the numbered building area names (BG 0, BG I,...), it was possible to develop a positive identity bond between the residents and their residential environment. It was recognised that it is easier for a "Sonnenberger" or a "Kaßbergerin" to express their district affiliation, but that it is not so easy to say "I am a BG III/IV resident".
However, especially in the demolition and upgrading of once high-density neighbourhoods (parts of the former BG VII, today's Markersdorf-Süd, had a residential density comparable to that of Monte Carlo), a quality of living was achieved that had previously been considered impossible. It was not only the Markersdorf Oasis that developed an appeal far beyond the district. High-quality neighbourhood parks, attractive playgrounds and upgraded pedestrian zones and boulevards were created everywhere.
There have long been waiting lists for flats in attractive locations. Some monthly rents have also exceeded the 1,000 euro mark. Thanks to the creativity of regional artists, there are impressive vertical works of art on the facades of buildings in every neighbourhood.
In its 50th year of existence, the residential area has consolidated and, with its municipal and cooperative flats, represents an important pillar of the Chemnitz housing market. Its residents can proudly present their Heckert to millions of guests in the Capital of Culture year 2025.