Refurbishing The Reeperbahn

Visitors to Reeperbahn Festival in September will notice a change to the area as part of the world-famous street needs to be demolished.

Some of the buildings that sprung up after Hamburg was demolished in WWII are crumbling, apparently as a result of car exhaust fumes affecting the type of concrete that was used. Apart from losing the much-used Molotov club and its upstairs bar, some of the bars used during the festival – including Sommersalon, Hörsaal and Das Herz von St. Pauli – will also be rubbled.

Another building to go will be the gas station, with its supermarket and bakery, on the corner of the block. Other venues further along the street, such as Docks and Schmidt’s Tivoli, aren’t affected by the work.

Frehn Hawel from Karsten Jahnke Konzertdirektion, which has its offices in the city’s St. Pauli district where the Reeperbahn is situated, says this year’s festival (Sept. 17-29) will likely find some new smaller venues in the nearby area.

Molotov is looking for a new site near the Reeperbahn.