EU and international affairs

European policy determines the focal areas of work of the Senate Department for Urban Development, Building and Housing in many respects: For example, individual European regulations and directives also concern aspects of urban development, construction and housing and affect the work of the Senate Department. Apart from binding EU law, European strategies, guidelines and funding programmes also influence the policy of the House.

For many years, the Senate Department for Urban Development, Building and Housing has successfully used the funds of the European Regional Development Fund, the ERDF. For example, it implemented the national “Social City” programme within the scope of Berlin’s “Socially Integrative City” initiative to level out the unequal living conditions in many neighbourhoods.

Several topics concerning the House are the subject of intensive scientific exchange on a European level, in which the Senate Department participates actively in European working groups and networks. They involve changes in the housing market, accessibility in cities and short-term lets via internet platforms. Other focal topics are dealt with on a European level together with European partners, such as European spatial development or the uniform provision of geoinformation.

To meet these requirements, the Senate Department for Urban Development, Building and Housing purposefully strengthens the European competency of its employees. The Senate Department is also involved in EU funded research projects, in order to work up solutions for pressing urban development issues together with other European cities.