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The Federal Chancellery in Berlin
Photo: IMAGO/Jürgen Ritter
There are to be 400 new offices, a kindergarten and a heliport: this is the plan for the expansion of the Federal Chancellery in Berlin.
The Berlin Senate has so far budgeted 600 million euros for this, but according to the "Bild" newspaper, the extension should be around 30 million euros more expensive.
A government spokesman confirmed to the newspaper that the construction project would become more expensive, among other things, because of a change in plans.
The extension is to be built on the site of the Chancellor Park to the west of the current Chancellery, with the Spree separating the two parts.
According to »Bild«, the construction will be more expensive due to a newly planned tunnel under the Spree, previously only two bridges were planned as a connection.
This amounts to 20 million euros - »Price level in the first quarter«, according to the spokesman.
On the other hand, the government wants to make a “nature conservation law compensation”, since several trees on the area of the new chancellery have to be felled for the construction work.
Among other things, this provides for tree transplants and “renaturation of a green area” in the Berlin district of Lichtenberg.
For the measure and further roof and facade greening, the government estimates another 10.5 million euros.
The Federal Audit Office had repeatedly criticized the project approved by the Berlin Senate in the past.
With a floor space of 25,000 square meters, the building will be just as large as the current chancellery.
The experts from the Federal Court of Auditors assume that there are other hidden costs.
The Chancellery wants to stick to the building.
According to the Federal Chancellery, there is an “acute shortage of offices”.
Under Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU), the number of employees in the house was increased from 460 to 750 between 2005 and 2021.
There are also employees of the Federal Press Office and other employees of the Commissioner for Culture and the Media.
The planning of the project is scheduled to end in 2023, when construction work will begin.
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