The Senate wants to begin construction on the section of Tortraße between Rosenthaler Platz and Chausseestraße. Their plan includes preserving four car lanes, the felling of 32 trees and narrowing the pavement to make way for a bike lane.
The Mitte district office announced that it will refuse to grant permits for the Senate’s planned removal of 32 trees and a hedge that lines the street. The Senate countered on Thursday, saying, “We don’t need a permit.”
“The Environmental and Nature Conservation Office has rejected the exemption permit for tree felling and hedge clearing for the Senate’s current road construction plans,” said Christopher Schriner (Die Grünen), the district councillor responsible for roads in Mitte. “We could not grant the permit for nature conservation reasons.”
The 32 trees will be felled as planned, countered the Senator for Transport Ute Bonde (CDU). This would be possible from mid-October. “The district cannot refuse the felling,” explained spokeswoman Petra Nelken. “This is an exceptional case.” Paragraph 4, section 6 of the tree protection ordinance permits the trees to be cut down, she said.
Five trees are “gone,” according to Petra Nelken. Another 27 trees obstruct sightlines and endanger traffic safety, or they would be in the way of accessible bus stops. These trees will be replaced by new plantings: 26 on Torstraße and six on neighbouring streets, the spokesperson explained.
Although Berlin’s climate adaptation law permits tree felling for road construction projects under certain conditions, the Mitte district office pointed out that the application for an exemption had to be rejected – “after intensive review and the involvement of environmental associations,” according to the city councillor.
Protests against the construction on Torstraße have been ongoing for weeks and will continue. The “Lebendige Torstraße” (Torstraße Alive) initiative is organising a “Tree Rave” from 18:00 to 22:00 this Friday under the motto “Bass instead of chainsaws”.
