HafenCity is a quarter in the district of Hamburg-Mitte in Hamburg. It is located on the Elbe river island that was formerly called Kehrwieder and Wandrahm.
HafenCity Hamburg is a project of city-planning where the old port warehouses of Hamburg are being replaced with offices, hotels, shops, official buildings, and residential areas. The project is the largest rebuilding project in Europe in scope of landmass (approximately 2,2 km²). The area of the HafenCity used to be part of the free port, but with the decreased economic importance of free ports in an era of European Union free trade, large container ships and increased border security, the Hamburg free port was reduced in size, removing the current HafenCity area from its restrictions. When completely developed, it will be home to about 12,000 people and the workplace of 40,000 people mostly in office complexes. The prospect for completion is not very clear, but will probably be around 2020-2030.
Because of the new division, the Warehouse District (Speicherstadt) now belongs to the administrative region of the northern part of HafenCity instead of part of the Altstadt. However, the term HafenCity is primarily used to refer to the area of city development, whereas Speicherstadt is seen as a separate quarter.
The area is served by the Katharinenschule, an elementary school. It will also be the future home of HafenCity University, a new school focusing on architecture and urban planning.
The city of Hamburg has been building a new concert hall on top of an old warehouse since 2007, to be called the Elbe Philharmonic Hall. The project was supposed to be a new landmark for the city, but has been plagued by vast cost overruns and is currently about three years behind schedule. It is scheduled to be opened by 2013.
The area is currently home to the German headquarters of both Kühne & Nagel, an international shipping conglomerate, The Spiegel Group new headquarters on the Ericusspitze and Unilever. Greenpeace is expected to open its new headquarters in Hafencity. The Hamburg-America Center opened its doors in 2009.
