Westfalenpark

In the course of its history, the site of today’s Westfalenpark has been used for many purposes. As early as 1816, it was the site of the pit “Am Busch“, featuring the first steam engine in Dortmund.
After the pit was closed, the site was used as a land fill and for allotments. Today’s public park was created on the occasion of the Bundesgartenschau 1959 on the site of the old Kaiser Wilhelm Hain (grove). Dortmund’s Westfalenpark hosted a Bundesgartenschau two more times (1969 and 1991).
For the Bundesgartenschau 1969, architect Günter Behnisch built a large sun sail at the park’s centre, which is still the central meeting point. The cultural events taking place beneath it include concerts and festivals and TV productions.
Westfalenpark is a popular destination and has many tourist attractions to offer. Adventure playgrounds, a boat hire and some sports facilities aside, it also features the Deutsches Rosarium or an exhibition on the former pit “Am Busch“. The park’s central feature is the TV tower, “Florian“, whose top thrones 220m above the park. At 75 hectares, Westfalenpark is one of the largest public parks in Europe.
In 2007, large-scale reconstruction work commenced within the framework of a research project with the working title “Florians Garten“ that is supposed to fundamentally change the park’s structures.

Author: editorial baukunst-nrw
Last changed on 25.11.2021

Categories:
Landscape Architecture » Parks