1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Leipzig
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Neuer Stadtteilpark Rabet
Short description of the intervention
The area of Neuschönefeld where the park is located was built in the 1970s. With residents continuously leaving the area, housing fell vacant and the quality of the area decreased. Therefore, it was identified as a major regeneration area of Leipzig. The expansion and redevelopment of the Rabet park between Volkmarsdorf and Neustadt-Neuschönefeld was aimed at creating important impulses for leisure and recreation and develop a central “green switch” which contributes to sustainable urban development that also extends beyond the district (2, 3, 6).
Address

Konradstraße 26
04315 Leipzig
Germany

Location
The NBS is situated in an area, with clear delineation of boundaries and a specific shape (polygon). The NBS project can also have more than one area location (more than one polygon, situated close by).
Area boundary
POINT (12.405831 51.342689)
POINT (12.405771 51.344084)
POINT (12.404934 51.344098)
POINT (12.40488 51.343877)
POINT (12.404301 51.343883)
POINT (12.404506 51.345569)
POINT (12.400955 51.345776)
POINT (12.400937 51.345409)
POINT (12.40171 51.345342)
POINT (12.401639 51.344865)
POINT (12.400332 51.344942)
POINT (12.400255 51.344562)
POINT (12.403843 51.342761)
Total area
96000.00m²
NBS area
96000.00m²
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Previous derelict area
Residential
Website of the intervention
http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/stadt-umbauen/abgeschlossene-stadtumbaupr…
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
2002
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2004
End date of the intervention
2007
Present stage of the intervention
Completed
Goals of the intervention
1. Increased quality of life in a residential area subject to decay and housing vacancy (2, 6);
2. Gentrification of surrounding residential districts, refurbishment of dwelling houses; conversion of former industrial areas;
3. Rehabilitation of brownfields with modern townhouses (2, 6);
4. Creation of a green recreational area for residents of all ages (2).
Quantitative targets
Extending the park area by 3 ha to cover 96,000 sqm in total (2)
Monitoring indicators defined
No monitoring indicators found
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Green space creation and/or management
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Creation of opportunities for recreation
Implementation activities
The city of Leipzig purchased ground to extend the park area and rededicated former roads.
- Creation of a large meadow in the middle of the park (4)
- Plantation of new seeds to create green islands with trees and flowers and lawns (4)
- Creation of a 1km-long active band with benches and seating arrangements, which leads to a multifunctional square that integrates typical park and playground elements such as an atrium, a pirate ship as well as sports and leisure facilities (2, 4, 6)
- Creation of two new paved entrance areas (4)
- Installation of 30 new benches and 22 seating cubes were set up along the circular route - the blackberry-colored asphalted "amoeba" (4)
- Installation of new lighting in the park (4)
- Building of a footbridge over the district heating pipes (4)
- Installation of new outdoor facilities for the daycare center and the primary school which are in line with the park design (4)
Type of NBS project
Creation of new green areas
Maintenance and management of urban nature
Transformation of previously derelict areas
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Parks and urban forests
Large urban parks or forests
Vegetation Type
Grass
Shrubs
Trees
Other
Please specify how many trees were planted
A total of 170 trees and 16,500 bushes were planted (4)
Amenities offered by the NBS
Benches and drinking water stations
Playgrounds
Sports areas and equipment
Cultural (museum, concert areas)
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Cultural services
Aesthetic appreciation
Inspiration for culture, art and design
Recreation
Mental and physical health and wellbeing
Social and community interactions
Scale
Spatial scale
Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Local government/Municipality
Citizens or community groups
Marginalized groups
Marginalized groups
Socio-economically disadvantaged populations (e.g. low-income households, unemployed)
Governance
Governance arrangements
Government-led
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
The regeneration and redevelopment process of the district park Rabet was initiated by the local government which determined the project as an important measure in the Conceptual City District Plan Leipzig's East. The planning for the new district park was specified by the Architectural Office in cooperation with the City Planning Office, Green Space Office, Office for Urban Renewal and Housing Promotion and AG Rabet and implemented based on the design of Berliner Büros Lützow 7 (2). The working group Rabet also took part in the planning of the intervention while citizens were involved through workshops and consultations (2, 3, 7).
Key actors - initiating organization
Local government/municipality
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
EU body
Regional government
Local government/municipality
Non-government organisation/civil society
Citizens or community group
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping)
Dissemination of information and education
Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
Citizen monitoring and review
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an Regional Directive/Strategy
Yes
Please specify the "Regional Directive/Strategy"
EU Sustainability Strategy, European Regional Development Fund since the project was co-funded by the latter (2)
NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan
Yes
Please specify the national regulations/strategy/plan
The urban development funding programme "Social City - investments in the quarter" which targets city districts exhibiting development requirements all over Germany was initiated in 1999 by the National Ministry for Transport, Construction and Urban Development (BMVBS) in collaboration with federal authorities. Its goal was to improve living, housing and economic conditions in poor and socially deprived city districts while improving the residents' identification via community involvement activities and introducing a so-called quarter management. Leipzig’s East is one of the programme’s focus areas (11).
NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan
Yes
Please specify the "local regulation/strategy/plan"
The Integrated Urban Development concept for Leipzig ("integriertes Stadtentwicklungskonzept") determines the objectives, urban areas and focus areas for development and contains a set of central measures; it provides the base for cross-departmental administrative action, collaboration and participation of non-governmental actors (10).
The redesign and extension of the district park Rabet between Neutstadt-Neuschönefeld and Volkmarsdorf is laid down and outlined as one of the three focal measures in the urban redevelopment plan for Leipzig's East (2). The latter is the "Conceptual City District Plan Leipzig's East" which was issued from 2001 to 2002 and is also taken up in a model plan 2020 that follows the two principles of "connecting green spaces" and preserve urban centres" (3,7). There is also an Integrated City Development Concept for Leipzig's East which mentions the measure of the Rabet park (9).
Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Mandatory (based on policy)
Intervention is mandatory
Spatial planning guidance
Please specify other type of mandatory intervention
Upgrading neighbourhood and sustainable development in the district and beyond
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
No
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify the general plan with GI/NBS section
In addition to the "Conceptual City District Plan Leipzig's East", there is the integrated urban development concept for Leipzig ("integriertes Stadtentwicklungskonzept") which also contains the focus area vacant space and environment and provides guidelines for the development of the latter (10). Furthermore, there is a more specialized city programme or initiative called "free spaces and new green" which fosters the creation of additional green space as well as grey-green conversions during urban redevelopment projects to gentrify areas in Leipzig's East (12).
If there is a relevant strategy or plan, please specify the theme / type of the plan.
City specific green space strategy or plan
Urban redevelopment plan
Please specify other vegetation type
Meadow
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
The forum Leipzig East meets three times a year. Representative from the private sector, local government, citizens and associations of any kind interested in the development of the district participated and discuss about upcoming projects and intitiatives (12).
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
Leipzig 2020: Integrated Urban Development Concept (10)
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
Subsidies were provided by European Regional Development Fund (EFRE), by the national programme "social town", citywide programme "Urban Redevelopment East" and the general budget of respective city departments (6).
Co-finance for NBS
Yes
Co-financing governance arrangements
Unknown
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
Unknown
Financing
Total cost
€2,000,000 - €4,000,000
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
4.64 million EUR
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
Approximately 4.64 million EUR are indicated as the total costs of the park redevelopment and extension (2).
Source(s) of funding
EU funds
Public national budget
Public regional budget
Public local authority budget
Type of fund(s) used
Earmarked public budget
Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Business models
Green densification model
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Public actor (e.g. municipality)
Type of innovation
Technological
Infrastructural innovation
Social
Policy innovation
Cultural innovation
Please specify technological innovation
Creation of an amoebic tape around a very heterogeneous quarter. The park has an important function as a green compensation for the former brownfield and the deficit of space in its surrounding quarters (Ref. 2 and 6)
Please specify social innovation
Implementation of an urban redevelopment strategy, Recreation areas for all citizens, Leisure meeting place - integrative demand. Through expansion of the park with additional spaces, the public park and its surounding area which was created during the industrial boom are gentrified in the long run, thereby creating a positive attitude towards urban redevelopment (Ref. 2 and 6)
Novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Green space and habitat
Increased green space area
Restoration of derelict areas
Description of environmental benefits
- The observed increase of green spaces and the decrease of unserviced brownfield areas in the district is positively mentioned and received by its residents (8).
Economic impacts
Stimulate development in deprived areas
Description of economic benefits
- Despite increased regeneration efforts triggered by the redevelopment project, the percentage of empty quarters is still high in the district and the quality of several quarters is still low. If no additional renovation will be performed, it is expected that even more housing units will fall empty (8)
Social and cultural impacts
Unknown
Description of social and cultural benefits
Unknown
Type of reported impacts
Expected impacts
Achieved impacts
Indicators
Assessments were identified for the following impacts: Regeneration, land-use and urban development. The other impacts stay at the level of expected impacts.
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Environmental quality
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
No information available
Environmental justice: The implementation of the NBS project resulted in ...
Improved access to green and/or blue spaces
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
Unknown as of October 2020
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
No evidence in public records
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Unknown
Evidence for use of assessment
Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
Stock-taking of occupany and renovation degree of housing units (inside and outside viewing and evaluation of condition) and comparison with an assessment conducted in 2003 (start of the project); interview with persons playing an active role in the quarter management of the district; interview with citizens to identify further fields for future action (Ref. 8)
Link to the output of assessments
http://www.civixx.de/papers/n_abschlussbericht-nsf-k.pdf
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Yes
Mode(s) of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Interview
Focus Group
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Yes
Please specify
Children and young people assessed the design of the park and decided which play areas to build (Ref. 4)
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Yes
Please specify
Children and young people assessed the design by and decided what play areas to build (Ref. 4).
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
Leipziger Osten
List of references
1. Stadt Leipzig. (2002). Gutachterverfahren Rabet “Erweiterung und Neugestaltung des Stadtteilparks Rabet im Leipziger Osten. Accessed on October 7, 2020, http://www.leipziger-osten.de/fileadmin/UserFileMounts/Redakteure/Inhaltsbilder/Stadtumbau/Stadtteilpark_Rabet/rabet_Gutachterverfahren.pdf
2. Stadt Leipzig. (n/a). Der neue Stadtteilpark Rabet: Grüne Oase im Leipziger Osten. Accessed on October 7, 2020, http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/stadt-umbauen/abgeschlossene-stadtumbauprojekte/stadtteilpark-rabet/
3. Stadt Leipzig. (n/a). Konzeptioneller Stadtteilplan. Accessed on October 7, 2020, http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/stadt-umbauen/konzept/ksp/
4. Stadt Leipzig. (n/a). Die Neugestaltung des Stadtteilparks Rabet 2004 bis 2007 Der 1. Bauabschnitt 2004. Accessed on October 7, 2020, http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/stadtumbau/stadtteilpark-rabet/bauabschnitte/
5. Stadt Leipzig. (n/a). ‘Check the Rabet’. Kinder und Jugendliche testeten Architektenentwürfe. Accessed on October 7, 2020, http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/stadtumbau/stadtteilpark-rabet/check-the-rabet/
6. Bundesamt für Bauwesen und Raumordnung; and Projektgruppe Werkstatt-Stadt. (2014). Parkgestaltung und Erweiterung auf Abrissflächen. Leipzig-Neuschönefeld „Stadtteilpark Rabet" (Sachsen). Website not available
7. Stadt Leipzig - der Oberbürgermeister; Dezernat Stadtentwicklung und Bau; Stadtplanungsamt (2003) ‘Konzeptioneller Stadtteilplan Leipziger Osten’, Beiträge Zur Stadtentwicklung, 38, p. 52. Accessed on October 7, 2020, http://www.leipziger-osten.de/fileadmin/UserFileMounts/Redakteure/Inhaltsbilder/Stadtumbau/KSP_LeipzigerOsten.pdf
8. Elsässer, R. and Löbel, R. (2006). Quartiersmanagement Neuschönefeld. Abschlussbericht. Leipzig. Accessed on October 7, 2020, www.civixx.de/papers/n_abschlussbericht-nsf-k.pdf
9. Stadt Leipzig. (2013). Integriertes Stadtteilentwicklungskonzept Leipziger Osten. Leipzig. Accessed on October 7, 2020, https://www.leipzig.de/fileadmin/mediendatenbank/leipzigde/Stadt/02.6_Dez6_Stadtentwicklung_Bau/64_Amt_fuer_Stadterneuerung_und_Wohnungsbaufoerderung/Leipziger_Osten_Fotos/Publikationen/Broschuere_Integriertes_Stadtentwicklungskonzept_Leipzig.pdf
10. Dezernat Stadtentwicklung und -bau. (2009). Integriertes Stadtentwicklungskonzept Leipzig 2020 (SEKo). Leipzig. Website not available
11. Stadt Leipzig. (2017). Bund-Länder-Programm Soziale Stadt - Investitionen im Quartier. Accessed on October 7, 2020, http://www.leipzig.de/bauen-und-wohnen/stadterneuerung-in-leipzig/foerderprogramme/programm-soziale-stadt/
12. Stadt Leipzig and Leipziger Osten. (2003). ‘Stadtumbau Freiraum und neues Grün’. Leipzig: Grünflächenamt; Stadtteilmanagement ‘Leipziger Osten’. Website not available.
13. Stadt Leipzig. (n/a). Forum Leipziger Osten. Accessed on October 7, 2020 http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/mitwirken/forum-leipziger-osten/
Comments and notes
Comments
Section. 1. Timeline: For the planning of the initative, the cooperative procedure for calling in expert opinion started in 2001.
Additional insights
Reference I could not insert due to space issues above:
Public Images
Urban Park Rabet
Source: http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/stadt-umbauen/abgeschlossene-stadtumbauprojekte/stadtteilpark-rabet/
Urban Park Rabet
Source: http://www.leipziger-osten.de/content/stadt-umbauen/abgeschlossene-stadtumbauprojekte/stadtteilpark-rabet/