Auf dem Kölnberg
High-rise complex in Cologne-Meschenich: today a social hotspot, home of the TV character Danni Lowinski and subject of several documentaries
"Kölnberg" is only a colloquial name. The estate was originally planned as the "Wohnpark auf dem Kölnberg".
Source: Wikipedia
Auf einen Blick
- Type
- High-rise complex of nine buildings
- Location
- Meschenich, Rodenkirchen district, Cologne; area around An der Fuhr, Am Rondorfer Pfad and Alte Brühler Straße
- Construction
- Built in 1973, completed in 1974
- Height
- Up to 26 floors
- Apartments
- 1,318 units ranging from 29 to 120 square metres
- Residents
- Around 4,100 people from more than 60 nations
The Kölnberg was originally conceived as an upscale real-estate project, with a swimming pool and sauna, a tennis court, a parking garage, a kindergarten and a caretaker for every building. Today it is considered a social hotspot and served as the home of the TV character Danni Lowinski.
The Original Concept
The complex was conceived as an upmarket property development under a investor-builder scheme, with most apartments intended as investments. Each building had its own caretaker, two lifts, rubbish chutes on every floor and coin-operated washing machines and tumble dryers. The estate included a swimming pool with a sauna area, a tennis court, a small football pitch, a kindergarten, a multi-storey car park and an underground garage. There were also shops and services for everyday needs: a supermarket, a pharmacy, a bakery, a laundry, a flower shop, a kiosk and a bank branch. Whether these facilities still exist today cannot be determined from the available information.
Kölnberg by the Numbers: The 2013 Federal Election
In the 2013 federal election, the complex formed its own Cologne polling district (21304, constituency 94 / Köln II). According to City of Cologne structural data, the share of residents with a migrant background was 61.8 percent, higher than in any other Cologne polling district. Only 1,135 residents, or 27.7 percent, were eligible to vote. Of these, 309 cast their ballot, not counting postal votes. Turnout was thus just 27.3 percent.
Kölnberg on Film and Television
Film and television productions regularly shoot at Kölnberg. In the series "Danni Lowinski", the complex is both the setting and the home of the main character. Dieter Bongartz and Wolfram Seeger made the documentaries "Die versteckte Stadt" (1988) and "Von Kopf bis Fuß unter Kontrolle – Kölnberg" (2000) about the estate. For the film "Am Kölnberg" by Robin Humboldt and Laurentia Genske, completed in 2014, four residents were followed over a period of two years.
Timeline
- 1973Construction of the high-rise complex 'Wohnpark auf dem Kölnberg' in Meschenich
- 1974Complex completed; letting of apartments proceeds slowly
- 1988Documentary 'Die versteckte Stadt' by Bongartz and Seeger released
- 2000Documentary 'Von Kopf bis Fuß unter Kontrolle – Kölnberg' released
- 2010Two major investors begin continuously buying up apartments
- 2013Federal election: complex forms its own polling district 21304, turnout 27.3%
- 2014Film 'Am Kölnberg' by Humboldt and Genske completed
Map
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Auto-generated, last verified: 2026-10-21
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