For quite some time after the fall of the Berlin Wall. City West largely retained the look of the old West Berlin in Charlottenburg Wilmersdorf. Over the last few years, however, a completely new City West has gradually emerged and taken shape. Kurfürstendamm, for example, now appears rejuvenated with several newly designed structures. The area between the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church and the Bahnhof Zoo railway station has undergone considerable development over several stages. The listed buildings from the 1950s in the vicinity of the Bikini. Berlin building have not only been completely refurbished but also reinterpreted to a certain extent. At the same time, prominently located new buildings, including high-rises, serve as symbols of continued and unbroken self- confidence. And the rich tradition of sophisticated urbanity that is the hallmark of the western part of the capital.
The transformation of City West is not yet complete, however, and – in typical Berlin fashion – likely never will be. Huthmacher- Haus, for example, is another iconic building from the postwar period that is set to undergo a complete refurbishing. There’s not much space for new construction in the district. Which is why modernization of existing buildings plays an important role here.