6+1: UNESCO World Heritage Site: The New Addition, "Waldsiedlung Zehlendorf"

The colorful housing estate was built between 1926 and 1931 in a total of seven construction phases. It was largely designed by architect Bruno Taut, whose plans also served as the basis for four of the six housing estates that were jointly designated as a World Heritage Site back in 2008.

The approximately 41-hectare site in the middle-class neighborhood of Zehlendorf comprises a total of over 800 row houses with gardens and around 1,900 apartments in blocks, each with three residential floors and a half-story attic. In terms of size, it is roughly equivalent to the Britzer Hufeisensiedlung, from which some principles, floor plans, and building components were adopted and further developed.

As chief architect at GEHAG, Taut designed both the master plan for the entire site and the majority of the buildings. Alongside Taut, the two architects Otto-Rudolf Salvisberg and Hugo Häring were involved in the design. They each planned a plot of townhouses in construction phases I and II. Landscape architect Leberecht Migge was commissioned to design the open spaces and gardens.

The complex—with its masterful use of color and skillful integration into the wooded surroundings—quickly came to be known as the “Papageiensiedlung” (Parrot Settlement). Although this name was originally intended as a derogatory term, it is now used with pride by the residents themselves. It also quickly found its way into the highly ideologically charged “Zehlendorf Roof Dispute,” which played out visibly along the street “Am Fischtal.”

Another name derives from its proximity to the “Onkel Toms Hütte” subway station, where we’ll begin our tour. Here, Otto Rudolf Salvisberg skillfully incorporated the design of two rows of shops running parallel to the tracks. This combination of transportation access and local amenities is also one of the three distinctive features that were rightly highlighted in the justification for the expansion proposal...

Our tour on Saturday, March 1, 2026, lasts just under two and a half hours and starts at 11:00 a.m. at the station’s western exit on Onkel-Tom-Straße.

• The tour costs €15 (reduced rate €12) per person, payable in cash on site.
• The number of participants is limited.
• Registration is therefore required at: tour@buschfeld.com