Stadtgarten
Cologne's first modern public park — and home to a renowned concert venue with a focus on jazz and over 400 events a year.
The Stadtgarten is an inner-city landscape park in Cologne's northern Neustadt district and is considered the city's first modern public park. A concert venue of the same name sits at the park's edge.
At a Glance
- Type
- Inner-city landscape park with adjacent concert venue and restaurant
- Location
- Neustadt/Nord, central district; between Venloer Straße and Gladbacher Straße
- Size
- Around 6 hectares (formerly 11 hectares)
- Founded
- 1827/28; redesigned 1888–1890
- Protected
- Landscape conservation area; buildings listed as monuments in North Rhine-Westphalia
- Notable
- Around 50 tree and shrub species, including exotic varieties
- Culture
- Concert venue specialising in jazz and new improvised music
The Stadtgarten concert venue grew out of a 1986 initiative by jazz-enthusiastic music students and now hosts over 400 events a year. Even more remarkable: when Cologne's Botanical Garden had to make way for the new central station in 1857, its exotic trees were simply transplanted into the Stadtgarten.
Area comparison
Area compared with other Cologne parks and green spaces.
History
The park was laid out in 1827/28 on land outside the city walls as an ornamental garden with an adjoining provincial tree nursery, designed by Cologne's garden director Jakob Greiß. In 1857, exotic trees from the former Botanical Garden on Maximinenstraße were transplanted here. When the Cologne–Bonn railway line was rerouted and the Westbahnhof built, the park was reduced to 6 hectares and redesigned between 1888 and 1890 by garden director Adolf Kowallek, who also had the gardener's house on Spichernstraße constructed.
Location and Surroundings
The park lies south-east of the railway embankment and Westbahnhof, which marks the boundary of the Inner Green Belt. Spichernstraße separates it from the Neustadt, whose late-19th-century buildings were planned by city architect Josef Stübben from 1880 with the park's proportions in mind. The church of Neu St. Alban was added to the park's northern corner in 1957/58.
Planting
Laid out in the English landscape style, the park was designed as a place of relaxation for city residents. Around 50 tree and shrub species were planted, including exotic varieties; the evergreen holly stands out in winter. A biotope survey recorded roughly 80 species, among them some unusual finds for an urban setting, such as greater stitchwort and wood dock.
Concert Venue and Events
Bordering the park along Venloer Straße, the concert venue was founded in 1986 by a group of jazz-enthusiast music students under the umbrella of the "Initiative Kölner Jazz Haus e. V." It includes a concert hall, the live club JAKI, a café-restaurant, a beer garden, and a garden restaurant. The programme covers over 400 events a year, with a focus on jazz and new improvised music, complemented by literary readings and panel discussions. Since 2006, a Christmas market has also been held on the grounds, where a rotating roster of stallholders changes on a weekly basis.
Timeline
- 1827/28Park established as ornamental garden with provincial tree nursery
- 1857Exotic trees relocated from the closed Botanical Garden
- 1880Planning of adjacent Neustadt district by city architect Josef Stübben
- 1888–1890Redesign after reduction from 11 to 6 hectares (garden director Kowallek)
- 1898Restaurant rebuilt
- 1957/58Church Neu St. Alban built at the north corner of the park
- 1986Stadtgarten concert venue founded by jazz-enthusiastic music students
- 2006First Christmas market next to the concert hall
Map
Blue dots: other places nearby — tap to explore.
Address
Venloer Str. 40
50672 Köln
Hours
Mo: 12:00–00:00
Di: 12:00–00:00
Mi: 12:00–00:00
Do: 12:00–00:00
Fr: 12:00–00:00
Sa: 11:00–00:00
So: 11:00–22:00
Contact
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Sources & links
- Official website
- Official Instagram (@stadtgarten_koeln)
- Official website (retrieved 2026-06-25)
- Wikidata (retrieved 2026-06-24)
- Wikipedia (retrieved 2026-06-24, rev 257876244)
Auto-generated, last verified: 2026-06-27