Over a year of campaigning has led to a milestone moment for German clubs in Berlin, which have now seen a change in their building regulations.

Live Musik Kommission in Germany has revealed that yesterday there was a near-unanimous vote by the Urban Development committee to give Berlin’s clubs and live music venues classification as ‘cultural sites.’ This is a change from their current status as ‘entertainment sites,’ which also includes other business locations such as betting shops, brothels, arcades and cinemas.

Cultural sites refer to institutions of cultural relevance such as theatres, museums and concert halls. The reason this change in classification is so important is because of benefits such as tax breaks, protection from being forced to move location, and permission to operate in more parts of a city.

There is also a proposed legal clause for clubs and music venues to have some altered rules about noise limits that would allow some special privileges.

This change comes after more than a year of campaigning from the multi-party ‘Parliamentary Forum For Club Culture & Nightlife’, and on Friday the 7th of May, it will be presented to the federal German government for its final consent.

Berghain was already given cultural status in 2016, and now the rest of the city’s clubs will be granted the same classification.

Pamela Schobeß of the Berlin Club Commission gave a statement saying: “We would like to thank the members of the Parliamentary Forum in particular for their commitment and perseverance in this matter,” then continued “With today’s decision, the Bundestag is sending a strong and long overdue signal to the republic. Music clubs are cultural institutions that shape the identity of city districts as an integral part of cultural and economic life. Now, an outdated law is to be adapted to reality. This helps to keep cities and neighbourhoods alive and liveable and to protect cultural places from displacement.”

Thore Debor is a spokesman for stakeholder LiveKomm, and he added: “We are counting on the federal government taking up this parliamentary mandate quickly and implementing the amendment of the building use ordinance in this legislature. Especially now in times of Corona, we need this overdue step more than ever.”

H/T: Resident Advisor