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New building for the Hamburg Opera: Controversial design causes protests!
Hamburg is planning the controversial new opera building in HafenCity, designed by Bjarke Ingels Group, at a cost of 500 million euros.
New building for the Hamburg Opera: Controversial design causes protests!
The new building of the Hamburg Opera is currently causing heated discussions in the city. The design comes from the renowned architectural firm Bjarke Ingels Group from Copenhagen and is to be realized at the new Baakenhöft location in HafenCity. The total costs for the ambitious project amount to around 500 million euros, with the Hamburg cultural authority emphasizing that a complete renovation of the old opera would be just as expensive as the new building itself. Safety mechanisms should also ensure that costs do not get out of hand, as was the case with the Elbphilharmonie. NDR reports that the draft is considered a Hanseatic understatement and is intended to send a signal for democracy and tolerance.
A key aspect of the design is generous roof overhangs and a spiral of roof gardens that will be open to the public. The building should not only impress during the day, but also become an icon of Hamburg at night thanks to special lighting. This is a midsummer night's dream for many Hamburg residents, and the jury for the qualification process rated the design as convincing in terms of urban planning and well thought out. The contract between the city of Hamburg and the Kühne Foundation was signed in February 2025, which represents a further step towards implementation. Hamburg.de reports.
Protests and historical debates
But not everything goes smoothly. While many are looking forward to the new building, there is also resistance. The Association of Those Persecuted by the Nazi Regime has already announced protests. This also initiates the discussion about how to deal with the Nazi past of the patron Klaus-Michael Kühne. These issues should not go unnoticed when it comes to building a new institution like the opera. A two-year planning phase is expected during which such critical issues must be addressed. NDR explains that the discussion about the foundation and its influence on the city's history is initiated.
However, the new opera building does not occupy the only place in Hamburg's urban development. The city saw a notable increase in housing construction in 2024: 8,319 new apartments were completed, an increase of 39% compared to the previous year. Despite the high demand, Hamburg is not achieving its strategic goal of 10,000 new apartments annually. Social housing construction is not left behind either, with 2,261 new social housing units created in 2024.
Here are some of the latest construction projects in Hamburg:
| project | New residential units | Special features | completion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billstedt | 58 | 28 publicly funded | 2026 |
| Downtown (Nik Quarter) | approx. 100 | A third publicly funded | 2030 |
| Rothenburgsort | 59 | Subsidized rental apartments | End of 2025 |
| Eissendorf | 216 | A third publicly funded | Early 2027 |
All of these developments show that Hamburg is growing and changing not only in cultural projects, but also in residential construction. The coming years promise some exciting changes, and it remains to be seen how the city's image will continue to unfold. With the new design of the opera, a new chapter in the cultural life of the Hanseatic city could also be written. Development City has put together the current projects.