Micro-Environment
Erkner – Small Town at the Gates of Berlin
Erkner is aptly captured in the word “idyllic.” Its scenery consists of rivers, lakes, forests and sprawling meadows. At the same time, Berlin lies right next door, a metropolis with a vast variety of art, culture, retail, gastronomy and night-life options to choose from. Living in Erkner means to get the best of both worlds.
You will be walking in the footsteps of 19th century writer Theodor Fontane who published a journal about his travels on foot through the Brandenburg margraviate. Many of the castles and manors, city halls and churches, city walls and gates, market square and streets he described have been preserved or painstakingly restored, testimony to Brandenburg’s history and hospitality.
“But none of these streams is perhaps more attractive and simultaneously unknown than the Löcknitz, which, coming from the Rotes Luch fen, disappears into one of the lakes between ‘Erkner’ and the limestone hills of Rüdersdorf. You will keep seeing the same props, of course; and yet, for whomever drives here in the late afternoon on the border line between forest and meadow, a series of the most graceful landscapes will open up. Here the forest will push forward on either side and create a narrowing, there it will recede and the narrow strip of meadow become either a field or the stream itself a pond, on which tranquil water lilies float in the glimmer of the setting sun.”
– Theodor Fontane: Walks through the Mark Brandenburg, volume 4, Spreeland, 1882
If you prefer things to be a bit more urban, you will find Erkner to be a colourful blend of past and present. Numerous small stores and restaurants will tempt you to browse and linger. Friedrichstrasse, the town’s high street and main road, is busy with traffic. Here, a mulberry tree and a Prussian milestone bear witness to the turbulent past of this small town.
Erkner and the Mulberry Tree
On the corner of Friedrichstrasse and Wollankstrasse grows a mulberry tree over 260 years old. It is the last specimen of a mulberry plantation that was created on the Erkner commons in 1752 for the purpose of cultivating silkworms.
A stylised mulberry tree with green leaves, roots and white fruit adorns the municipal coat of arms of Erkner.
Just a few feet away lies the former summer mansion of piano manufacturer Carl Bechstein (made an honorary citizen in 1893), today’s city hall. The parklands of Rathauspark next to it extend all the way to the shore of Dämeritzsee, which has always been a great place to promenade. You will also find a dock here for pleasure boats.
Culture: Gerhart Hauptmann – the City’s Most Renowned Scion
The writer Gerhart Hauptmann, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, lived in Erkner between 1884 and 1889 – four years that laid the foundation for much of his future creativity: Many places, figures and stories observed in and around Erkner found their way into his narratives: Mother Wolffen in “The Beaver Coat,” the protagonist of “Lineman Thiel,” Lake Flakensee, and the Kielblock family in “Carnival” or the street Alte Poststrasse in “Till Eulenspiegel” are cases in point.
The house where Hauptmann used to live, called Lassensche Villa, became known as “the spa building” and is now home to the Gerhart Hauptmann Museum.
Science
Among the science institutions based in Erkner counts the Leibniz Institute for Research on Society and Space (IRS). The internationally networked institute is devoted to the applied basic research on the long-term viability of cities and regions.
In addition, the Adlershof campus of Humboldt University and the HTW University of Applied Sciences for Engineering and Economics in Oberschöneweide are just a few kilometres away in Treptow-Köpenick, the nearest of Berlin’s boroughs.
Sports and Leisure
Water sports enthusiasts will find just what their hearts desire in the water-rich area between Dämeritz, Lake Flakensee, River Spree and Löcknitz. Many of the lakes in the vicinity are also great for fishing, swimming or just taking it easy. Cyclists can take advantage of the well-developed cycle trails for day trips or some long-haul trekking in any direction. The lido at Lake Werlsee in nearby Grünheide has the added attraction of a climbing forest with six high-rope courses.
Nearly 60 clubs, including 15 sports clubs and 12 clubs devoted to art and culture enrich the social life or sporting competition in Erkner. For national football league games, you won’t have far to go either, as the stadium of 1. FC Union in Köpenick is close at hand.
History
“His Majesty, the King, have deigned to approve by the most high degree,” that “Rüdersdorfer Heath District no. 1” be called “Erkner” henceforth.
Notice in the Royal Official Journal of 22 March 1889.
First official mention of Erkner actually dates back to 1579, when the church register of Rüdersdorf listed the homestead of a certain fisherman as “Arckenow.” Over time, this name of the cadastral district evolved into Erkenau, then Erkener, and finally Erkner.
In 1889, Erkner officially got its name, and on 06 June 1998 became the first town in East Germany after the country’s reunification to be granted town privileges.
Infrastructure: Easy to Reach by Road, Rail and Air
The RE 1 regional express from Cottbus to Magdeburg via Frankfurt (Oder) and Berlin also stops in the fully modernised station of Erkner. From here, it’s only a short commute to Berlin’s stations of Ostkreuz, Alexanderplatz, the central railway station, Zoo and to Potsdam beyond. Berlin’s rapid transit system also serves Erkner, as it is the terminal station of the S3 line from Spandau via the central railway station and Wihelmshagen. The commute to downtown Berlin with either rail service takes half an hour.
The well-developed bus network also includes, in addition to a number of regional lines serving Brandenburg, bus line 161 from Berlin, which terminates in Schöneiche after passing through Rahnsdorf.
With the nearest motorway entrance slip road (A10) located on the eastern edge of Erkner, the town is just as easily accessible by car. Direct connections to Berlin as well as to Grünheide, for instance, include the L30 and L38 secondary roads. Also within easy reach are industrial areas nearby, among them the Tesla Gigafactory in Grünheide or the GreenWorkPark in Hangelsberg, where innovative companies and institutes get ready for the future, while other major businesses are based in the trading estates of Freienbrink. Berlin-Brandenburg Airport (BER) is conveniently reached via the motorway.
Just a short distance away lies the state-of-the-art technology park WISTA in Adlershof, a science and business park extending over 420 hectares, as well as the Wuhlheide innovation park and the Spreeknie technology park and business incubator in the borough of Treptow-Köpenick.
Business and Jobs
Economically, Erkner is small, but packs a punch: About 750 businesses are based here, including pharmacies, banks, tax consultancies, advertising agencies and carpentry shops. A major employer is Prefere Resins, one of the leading phenolic resin manufacturers in Europe.
There are three business areas within the city limits, home to manufacturing industry, tradesmen’s shops and service operations as well as retail and gastronomy businesses.
Childcare, Education, Social Services and Families
The municipality is investing massively in the town’s future. A richly varied spectrum of educational, daycare and counselling options is complemented by a dense network of social services. The town supports families even financially whenever a child is born or starting school.
Indeed, children are well taken care of in Erkner. There is a primary school, two secondary schools (one of them a grammar school) and two learning disability schools (one of them for the mentally challenged), plus a satellite campus of the Music and Art Academy and an adult education centre. Childcare is provided by seven day nurseries and daycare centres available, along with a number of childminders.
A children’s farm in Erkner with a petting enclosure has been a popular day-trip destination for the past 15 years, and even offers overnight lodgings.
Real Estate Development in Erkner
Berlin’s greater metro region is more than just a recreational destination. Rather, the gravy belt has specifically attracted young families and couples who are thinking about starting a family. Properties still sell at affordable prices, while the city is only a short distance away.
According to the Capital business paper, demand for real estate has increased significantly in Erkner just like elsewhere. The prices of new-build homes increased by 13.8 % last year. The Terra Homes are the only new-build houses in the entire area that will be built to the KfW efficiency house 55 standard, meaning with a share of at least 55 percent in renewable energies for the heat and cold supply – and corresponding federal funding for the buyer.
Mobile Work Requires Space and a Stable Network
According to the Trend Barometer published by the Berlin Hyp AG mortgage lender, more and more people are moving into the suburbs. In a departure from the urban-living mega trend of recent years, 43.1 % of the 5,000 respondents to the survey prefer living in the countryside now, and 23.8 % in the city’s outskirts.
Many people have worked from home since the outbreak of the pandemic – and need more space to do so. Yet the price of floor space in the city has been relatively quick to rise in recent years. As a result, demand for detached and semi-detached homes on the outskirts and in the integrated conurbation has steadily increased.
Reliable internet connectivity is of the essence in this context. Luckily, Erkner boasts a high network coverage for cellular telecommunication. The houses of Terra Homes will be connected to the fibre-optics network and will thus benefit from assured network stability.
Erkner Snapshot
- Total area: 1,653 ha
- thereof
- Woodlands: 686 ha
- Building and clearance space: 306 ha
- Farmland: 261 ha
- Transport area: 149 ha
- Water area: 135 ha
- Recreational area: 66 ha
- Remaining area: 50 ha
- Population: 11,856 residents
- Population density: 7.2 residents per hectare
- Population growth over past five years: + 2.7 %
- Districts: Alte Hausstelle, Heim Gottesschutz, Hohenbinde, Jägerbude, Karutzhöhe, Neu Buchhorst, Neuseeland, Schönschornstein and Spreeeck