Pankow

Pankow (German: [ˈpaŋkoː] ⓘ) is the most populous and the second-largest borough by area of Berlin. In Berlin's 2001 administrative reform, it was merged with the former boroughs of Prenzlauer Berg and Weißensee; the resulting borough retained the name Pankow. Pankow was sometimes claimed by the Western Allies (United States, United Kingdom, and France) to be the capital of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), while the German Democratic Republic itself considered East Berlin to be its capital.

For the locality within Pankow, see Pankow (locality). For other uses, see Pankow (disambiguation).
Pankow
Borough of Berlin
Entrance of the Búrgerpark in the district
Entrance of the Búrgerpark in the district
Flag of Pankow
Flag
Coat of arms of Pankow
Coat of arms
Location of Pankow in Berlin
Pankow is located in Germany
Pankow
Pankow
Pankow is located in Berlin
Pankow
Pankow
Coordinates: 52°34′N 13°24′E
CountryGermany
StateBerlin
CityBerlin
Subdivisions13 localities
Government
 • MayorDr. Cordelia Koch (Greens)
Area
 • Total103.07 km2 (39.80 sq mi)
Population
 (2022-02-12)[1]
 • Total410,716
 • Density4,000/km2 (10,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Vehicle registrationB
Websiteberlin.de/ba-pankow

Overview

The borough, named after the Panke river, covers the northeast of the city region, including the inner city locality of Prenzlauer Berg. It borders Mitte and Reinickendorf in the west, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg in the south, and Lichtenberg in the east. Pankow is Berlin's largest borough by population and the second largest by area (after Treptow-Köpenick).

Between 1945 and 1960, Schönhausen Palace and the nearby Majakowskiring street in the Niederschönhausen locality of Pankow was the home to many members of the East German government. Western writers therefore often referred to Pankow as a metonym for the East German regime—as reflected by Udo Lindenberg's song Sonderzug nach Pankow.

The Rykestrasse Synagogue, Germany's largest synagogue, is located in the Prenzlauer Berg locality. The Weißensee Cemetery is one of the largest Jewish cemeteries in Europe. In northern Prenzlauer Berg, the Wohnstadt ("residential town") Carl Legien is part of the Berlin Modernist Housing Estates UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Weißer See is the borough's largest natural body of water.

Subdivision
Subdivisions of Pankow

The Pankow borough consists of 13 localities:

Politics

District council

The governing body of Pankow 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 +/-
Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne) Cordelia Koch 56,349 24.7 Increase 4.1 16 Increase 4
The Left (LINKE) Sören Benn 44,351 19.4 Decrease 1.6 12 Decrease 1
Social Democratic Party (SPD) Rona Tietje 38,984 18.1 Decrease 3.0 11 Decrease 1
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Denise Bittner 28,165 12.3 Decrease 0.4 8 ±0
Alternative for Germany (AfD) Daniel Krüger 17,822 7.8 Decrease 5.5 5 Decrease 3
Free Democratic Party (FDP) Thomas Enge 13,241 5.8 Increase 1.9 3 Increase 1
Tierschutzpartei 6,053 2.7 New 0 New
Die PARTEI 5,310 2.3 Decrease 0.3 0 ±0
dieBasis 4,236 1.9 New 0 New
Volt Germany 3,980 1.7 New 0 New
The Greys 3,429 1.5 New 0 New
Free Voters 2,315 1.0 New 0 New
Klimaliste 1,885 0.8 New 0 New
Renters' Party 1,523 0.7 Decrease 0.9 0 ±0
Ecological Democratic Party 459 0.2 New 0 New
Valid votes 228,102 99.3
Invalid votes 1,561 0.7
Total 229,663 100.0 55 ±0
Electorate/voter turnout 310,049 74.1 Increase 7.3
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. Sören Benn of The Left was elected mayor on 27 October 2016. Since the 2021 municipal elections, the composition of the district government is as follows:

Councillor Party Portfolio
Sören Benn LINKE District Mayor
Economy, Finance, Staff and Logistics
Cordelia Koch GRÜNE Deputy Mayor
Social Affairs, Health and Planning
Rona Tietje SPD Urban Development and Civil Service
Manuela Anders-Granitzki CDU Public Order, Streets, Green Spaces and Environment
Cornelius Bechtler GRÜNE Youth
Dominique Krössin LINKE Education, Sport and Culture
Source: Berlin.de

Transportation

Motorised transportation

Pankow's road network is characterised by three radial axes to and from the city centre at Alexanderplatz - all of them running in a north/north-eastern direction: B96a (Schönhauser Allee/Berliner Straße), B109 (Prenzlauer Allee/Prenzlauer Promenade) and B2 (Greifswalder Straße/Berliner Allee). B109 leads to A114; Pankow is also the only borough in Berlin which is directly served by the Berliner Ring A10.

The ring roads of Danziger Straße (within the Berlin S-Bahn circle line) and Ostseestraße - Wisbyer Straße - Bornholmer Straße also of high importance.

Public transportation

Pankow is served by the S-Bahn lines S1, S2, S25, S26, S41, S42, S8 and S85. The northeastern part of the Berlin S-Bahn circle line is located in Pankow, which includes the stations of Storkower Straße, Landsberger Allee, Greifswalder Straße, Prenzlauer Allee and Schönhauser Allee. Bornholmer Straße station and Wollankstraße station border the borough of Mitte, while Schönholz station and Wilhelmsruh station border Reinickendorf. The Stettiner Bahn serves Pankow, Pankow-Heinersdorf, Blankenburg, Karow and Buch.

In addition to the S-Bahn, five U-Bahn stations are located in the borough of Pankow: Senefelderplatz, Eberswalder Straße, Schönhauser Allee, Vinetastraße and Pankow. At Schönhauser Allee and Pankow, travellers can change to S-Bahn services.

Twin towns – sister cities
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Pankow is twinned with:[2]

Photogallery
School behind the town hall
Town hall
Pankow Church
Public transport station in Pankow

See also

References
  1. "Berlin-Wahl 2023: So hat Pankow gewählt". Der Tagesspiegel Online.
  2. "Städtepartnerschaften". berlin.de (in German). Berlin. 12 September 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
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