So now the time has come: even though it will still take around four months until the festive opening, a big step has already been taken today towards the final completion of the new Old Town: The construction fences that have surrounded the area in recent years have come down. Now the citizens of Frankfurt can get a first impression of what has been worked on so intensively here. It is true that construction work is still underway in some places and that there will certainly be occasional closures. But nevertheless, walking through the new alleys already gives a very nice impression of how the area will look once all the apartments and shops are busy and the quarter is integrated into everyday life.
Mayor Peter Feldmann, at today's opening, which was attended by numerous representatives from politics, culture and the media, was enthusiastic about the result of a process that has taken years and has not always been easy. His predecessor Petra Roth, who had been very committed to the area and will also live here in the future, is also convinced that now even the last critics will fall silent.
Thomas "Bäppi" Bäppler-Wolf is also very pleased about the opening. <link http: www.baeppi.de stadtfuehrungen-mit-baeppi _blank>He will be offering guided tours of the old town from June. "So far, 30 dates have already been booked," he tells us. "And new ones are being added almost daily." That the new Old Town would meet with great interest, he was always convinced of that. But that it is now so enormous, he was a little surprised. But he is already looking forward to his new job as a guide in the old town.
Now that the construction fences have come down, residents will move into their new apartments over the next few months, and the shops that will be located here in the future will also be expanded and then begin operating in late summer. Around 30 ground-floor spaces are planned in the DomRömer quarter for restaurants, retail outlets and businesses. A flower shop, the "Kulturothek Frankfurtladen", a butcher's shop, a vinotheque, an Italian Café-Bar, a hat salon, a pottery or a toy shop are just as much a part of it as a pharmacy, a supplier of vegan baked goods, a jewelry shop and a drugstore. It was important that no chains or "to-go" shops be located here. The city quarter will, of course, bring added tourist value, but should still be at its core a place for Frankfurt citizens where it is wonderful to stroll, shop and enjoy.
Whether this has been achieved, you can now see for yourself. Just have a look!
