Lichtenberg
Borough of Berlin
Flag of Lichtenberg
Flag
Coat of arms of Lichtenberg
Coat of arms
Location of Lichtenberg in Berlin
Lichtenberg is located in Germany
Lichtenberg
Lichtenberg
Lichtenberg is located in Berlin
Lichtenberg
Lichtenberg
Coordinates: 52°32′N 13°30′E / 52.533°N 13.500°E / 52.533; 13.500
CountryGermany
StateBerlin
CityBerlin
Subdivisions10 localities
Government
 • MayorMichael Grunst (Left)
Area
 • Total52.30 km2 (20.19 sq mi)
Population
 (2020-12-31)[1]
 • Total296,837
 • Density5,700/km2 (15,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Vehicle registrationB
WebsiteOfficial homepage

Lichtenberg (German: [ˈlɪçtn̩ˌbɛʁk] ⓘ) is the eleventh borough of Berlin, Germany. In Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it absorbed the former borough of Hohenschönhausen.

Overview

The district contains the Tierpark Berlin in Friedrichsfelde, the larger of Berlin's two zoological gardens. During the period of Berlin's partition between West and East, Lichtenberg was the location of the headquarters of the Stasi, the East German state security service. Prior to the establishment of the GDR it housed the main office of the Soviet Military Administration in Berlin, and before that it was an officers' mess of the Wehrmacht. The complex is now the location of the Stasi Museum. The Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial is on the site of the main remand prison of the Stasi. Additionally, Lichtenberg is the location of the German-Russian Museum, the historical venue of the unconditional surrender of the German armed forces (Wehrmacht) on 8 May 1945.

The population is ethnically diverse, and has a significant Vietnamese community.

Subdivision

Subdivisions of Lichtenberg

Lichtenberg is divided into 10 localities:

Locality
 Area
(km2)
 Inhabitants
30 June 2008		 Density
(inhabitants/km2)
1101 Friedrichsfelde
 5.8 50,010 8,622
1102 Karlshorst
 6.6 21,057 3,190
1103 Lichtenberg
 7.33 32,295 4,406
1104 Falkenberg
 3.0 1,164 388
1106 Malchow
 3.0 450 150
1107 Wartenberg
 5.31 2,433 458
1109 Neu-Hohenschönhausen
 5.32 53,698 10,094
1110 Alt-Hohenschönhausen
 10.0 41,780 4,178
1111 Fennpfuhl
 1.75 30,932 17,675
1112 Rummelsburg
 4.16 17,567 4,223

History

The historic village of Lichtenberg together with neighbouring Friedrichsfelde, Karlshorst, Marzahn, Biesdorf, Hellersdorf, Kaulsdorf and Mahlsdorf was incorporated as the 17th borough of Berlin by the 1920 Greater Berlin Act.

In the 1970s, the East German government had large pre-fabricated high-rise housing estates (Plattenbau) built in the east of the Lichtenberg borough. This area was separated off and became the new borough of Marzahn, which included Biesdorf, Hellersdorf, Kaulsdorf and Mahlsdorf in 1979. In 1986, this district in turn was split into the two boroughs of Marzahn and Hellersdorf in 1986, and again merged as Marzahn-Hellersdorf by the 2001 administrative reform.

Politics

District council

The governing body of Lichtenberg is the district council (Bezirksverordnetenversammlung). It has responsibility for passing laws and electing the city government, including the mayor. The most recent district council election was held on 26 September 2021, and the results were as follows:

Party Lead candidate Votes  % +/- Seats +/-
The Left (LINKE) Michael Grunst 36,283 24.8 Decrease 5.0 15 Decrease 3
Social Democratic Party (SPD) Jutta Feige 28,739 19.6 Decrease 2.0 12 Decrease 1
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Martin Schaefer 19,224 13.1 Increase 0.5 8 Increase 1
Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) Daniela Ehlers 19,057 13.0 Increase 4.8 8 Increase 3
Alternative for Germany (AfD) Karsten Woldeit 17,528 12.0 Decrease 7.2 7 Decrease 5
Free Democratic Party (FDP) Rico Apitz 8,009 5.5 Increase 2.5 3 Increase 3
Tierschutzpartei Katja Michel 6,528 4.5 New 2 New
Die PARTEI 3,744 2.6 New 0 New
Free Voters 3,214 2.2 New 0 New
dieBasis 2,179 1.5 New 0 New
Pirate Party Germany 1,124 0.8 Decrease 2.1 0 ±0
National Democratic Party 433 0.3 Decrease 0.7 0 ±0
Liberal Conservative Reformers 214 0.1 New 0 New
Valid votes 146,276 98.8
Invalid votes 1,767 1.2
Total 148,043 100.0 55 ±0
Electorate/voter turnout 216,202 68.5 Increase 8.4
Source: Elections Berlin

District government

The district mayor (Bezirksbürgermeister) is elected by the Bezirksverordnetenversammlung, and positions in the district government (Bezirksamt) are apportioned based on party strength. Michael Grunst of the Left was elected mayor on 16 December 2016. Since the 2021 municipal elections, the composition of the district government is as follows:

Councillor Party Portfolio
Michael Grunst LINKE District Mayor
Staff, Finance, Economy and Culture
Kevin Hönicke SPD Deputy Mayor
Urban Development, Civil Service and Labour
Martin Schaefer CDU Public Order, Environment and Traffic
Filiz Keküllüoğlu GRÜNE Education, Sport and Logistics
Camilla Schuler LINKE Family, Youth and Health
Vacant AfD Social Affairs
Source: Berlin.de

Twin towns – sister cities

Lichtenberg is twinned with:[2]

People

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Einwohnerinnen und Einwohner im Land Berlin am 31. Dezember 2020" (PDF). Amt für Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg. February 2021.
  2. ↑ "Städtepartnerschaft – Lichtenberg pflegt Partnerschaften". berlin.de (in German). Berlin. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
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