Wild Forest Grows Over Erich Kästner's Ku'damm Tennis Courts, Blocking Planned Housing

A long-running housing dispute in Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf has taken an unexpected turn. A developer holds a valid building permit for a 70-unit residential building in the inner courtyard of a protected heritage settlement at the historic Ku'damm tennis courts — a site residents have opposed since 2013. Previous legal proceedings appeared to settle the matter in the developer's favour. However, the environmental city councillor for the district has drawn attention to the fact that dense woodland has now grown organically across the formerly open site. Under Berlin-Brandenburg forestry law, sufficiently established vegetation can qualify as protected forest, which would require a formal forestry survey before any construction activity could be permitted. The site has a notable cultural history: it was once used as tennis courts by prominent Berliners, and author Erich Kästner is among those said to have played there. The Tagesspiegel article published on 22 October 2026 suggests the unexpected vegetation could provide opponents with fresh grounds to further delay or challenge the building permit. No date has been set for the forestry assessment, and it is not yet clear how long the process might take.