Protests aimed at saving the early 20th century landmark
The main railroad station in Stuttgart resembles an armory — massive stones, small windows, a landmark 12-story tower, an illuminated Mercedes-Benz logo and a commanding presence in the center of the city. I wouldn’t call it a beautiful building, but it is imposing. Recently, Stuttgart, a key industrial city that was heavily damaged during World War II, once had to choose between recreating or replacing the old as it rebuilt. Now, it is grappling with another major downtown decision.
Up to this point, the neo-Romanesque station is a terminal station, meaning that the tracks dead-end there so that trains can discharge and take on passengers and then pull out again in the direction they came from. The railroad or the government or both want to make it a through station and reorient that tracks from east-west to north south. The €4.1 billion project, called Stuttgart 21 to reflect the present century, includes undergrounding rail operations, which in turn would require demolishing the entire station. It was designed by renowned Stuttgart architect Paul Bonatz, who lived, worked and taught through the turbulent 1930s and 4os, but never joined the Nazi Party so was considered political unreliable. He died in 1956, and there is a possibility that this masterwork, which was completed in 1928, will die of zealous modernization.
Along with demolishing the station, the plan would call for the destruction of hundreds of grand old trees in the park across the street. It could be argued that trees can be replanted, even if they take a long time to mature, but there is no question that the demolition of a landmark is forever. Germany reproduced many of its destroyed and damaged landmarks once and is probably disinclined to do so again.
Preservationists and nostalgic locals began protesting — up to 100,000, according to some reports, met with tear gas and pepper spray. Conservatives surprisingly joined the protest to object to the disruption that this massive project would cost to rail travel and to the city. UNESCO got into the fray last year by nomnating the building for inclusion in the World Cultural Heritage list. The government will take up the issue. The best scenario would be a compromise that would incorporate the landmark building with modern rail transportation needs.
Stay tuned.
