Urban Structure / Urban Structure - Area Types Differentiated 2020

Methodology

The maps of both the urban structure mapping system and those of the actual use mapping system used the block (segment) area map of the City and Environment Information System (ISU) as the spatial reference system, and have been updated together. Generally, the area types correspond to the block and block segment areas identified in the land use mapping. Since the 2020 update, it has also been possible to form block segments based on different area types in order to portray the land use categories in a more differentiated manner.

For areas assigned both to the Map “Actual Use of Built-Up Areas” (06.01) and to Map “Inventory of Green and Open Spaces” (06.02) (dual use) the area type is oriented toward the structural use. An exception here is sports use, which is counted as green and open space use, and is always categorised as dual use together with Public facilities / special use. The type categorisation distinguishes between covered and uncovered sports facilities, with the latter being assigned to the group “Open space use area types”.

Updating of the geometry and the use data

Update of the block (segment) area map of Berlin, 1 : 5,000 (ISU5)

The block boundary changes carried out between 2015 and 2020, including the current area key of the Berlin-Brandenburg Office of Statistics, have been adopted into the geometry of the ISU5. For all newly created blocks a use mapping procedure was carried out with the aid of aerial photography and other documents (see Statistical Base). Following the representation and differentiation system of the use and area classification of the Environmental Atlas, a further subdivision of the block areas into block segment areas was implemented where necessary, in order to distinguish different use- or area types from each other.

Plausibility check and comparison with various spatial data bases

In addition to the geometric update of the ISU5 block (segment area) map of Berlin, the update as of December 31, 2020 focussed on verifying the land uses and area types of the entire database using geodata that had been recorded in recent years by the Senate Departments and other bodies for a variety of specialised tasks (see Statistical Base). The rules on the permissibility of combinations of different land uses and area types were slightly revised as part of this. Furthermore, plausibility checks were carried out for the entire database following these rules (SenStadtWohn 2021a).

The various specialised databases were either already available as ISU block (segment) area data or could be merged and compared with the ISU block (segment) area map, which then revealed individual cases for which the use data had to be verified. For example, the existing data on the Site Occupancy Index (SOI) was used to check the allocation of the blocks of the area types commercial and industrial area with dense or sparse development. The SOI indicates the share of the area covered with structural facilities, compared to the size of the lot (cf. Article 19 Para. 1 of the Federal Land Utilisation Ordinance (BauNVO)). It was therefore examined whether commercial and industrial areas have an SOI greater or less than 0.5 (corresponding to building structures covering either more or less than 50 % of the area) in accordance with their definition (sparse / dense development).

Retrospective densification and any resulting changes in area type classification of residential, mixed and commercial uses were examined for the first time as part of the ISU5 block (segment) map update as of December 31, 2020. Furthermore, the data of the Housing Construction Space Information System (WoFIS) served as a new, valuable data basis, which provides information on planned and already implemented urban housing projects involving 50 residential units or more, identifiable by lot.

In the current revision, 5,846 areas of the total of 26,378 contained in the ISU5 block (segment) area map were checked. Of these, 2,350 areas were assigned to a new use category.

In total, 596 blocks and block segment areas were assigned a new key, 506 block segment areas were dissolved.