Editing Alexanderplatz (section)

===Demolition and reconstruction (1945–1964)===
Before a planned reconstruction of the entire {{lang|de|Alexanderplatz|italic=no}} could take place, all the war ruins needed to be demolished and cleared away. A popular black market emerged within the ruined area, which the police raided several times a day.

One structure demolished after World War II was the 'Rote Burg', a red brick building with round arches, previously used as police and Gestapo headquarters. The huge construction project began in 1886 and was completed in 1890; it was one of Berlin's largest buildings. The 'castle' suffered extensive damage during 1944-45 and was demolished in 1957. The site on the southwest corner of Alexanderplatz remained largely unused as a carpark until the Alexa shopping centre opened in 2007.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Red Town Hall |url=https://www.visitberlin.de/en/red-townhall-babylon-berlin |access-date=9 January 2023 |website=Visit Berlin}}</ref>

Reconstruction planning for post-war Berlin gave priority to the dedicated space to accommodate the rapidly growing motor traffic in inner-city thoroughfares. This idea of a traffic-oriented city was already based on considerations and plans by {{lang|de|[[Ludwig Hilberseimer]]|italic=no}} and {{lang|fr|[[Le Corbusier]]|italic=no}} from the 1930s.<ref name=":3" />