Why Berlin's legendary Artemis could make way for a 200-meter cracker
From brothel pioneer to power tower:
Berlin, February 2026 - the city never sleeps, and sometimes it just radically changes its skin. Current example: Artemis in Halensee, THE major brothel in the capital since 2005, is apparently on the verge of closing - at least in its original location directly on the A100. Instead, the operators are planning a skyscraper that would go beyond Berlin standards: over 200 meters high, higher than the Estrel Tower currently under construction (176 m) and only topped by the TV tower (365 m).
The provisional project name sounds almost ironically serious: "Messeturm Berlin" / "Expo Tower Berlin". The plans include hotel rooms, furnished apartments for trade fair guests (the ICC/trade fair grounds are virtually opposite), showrooms and offices - a classic mixed-use business project. Demolition and new construction would be a real taboo-breaker in the Berlin skyline: From the city's largest nudist temple to the tallest secular building. Just Berlin.
But let's start at the beginning - because the Artemis is not just any old location. It has a real history.
2005: When Berlin was still called the "brothel of Europe"
The opening in September 2005 coincided with a very special time. Three years earlier (2002), the Bundestag had passed the Prostitution Act: Prostitution was legalized, sex work was recognized as a "service", brothels were officially allowed to advertise and submit business registrations. Germany was suddenly regarded internationally as the "brothel of Europe" - a label that was sometimes mockingly and sometimes shockingly applied.
The brothers Hakki (also known as Haki/Hakim) and Kenan Şimşek, entrepreneurs of Turkish origin with experience in the casino and investment sector, stumbled right into this window. Hakki Şimşek bought an old, multi-storey warehouse on Halenseestraße - right next to the A100 city highway, where the traffic noise drowns out everything anyway. Investment sum: around 5 million euros. The dazzling financier Florian Homm (who later hit the headlines due to the collapse of his investment company) is also said to have invested early on.
The concept was ambitious: Not a dingy backyard club, but a wellness temple with eroticism. Four floors, almost 3000 m² of space, a large pool, three saunas, two cinemas, bars, a restaurant area - and room for up to 70-100 sex workers (mostly self-employed) and 600 guests at the same time. Admission price back then was around €80-100 (everything included except sex), after that a matter of negotiation.
Artemis marketed itself as "Berlin's largest nudist and sauna club" - and quickly became synonymous with the new, commercialized red light mainstream after liberalization. It was loud, it was big, it was visible - and it polarized people from day one.
Highs and lows: raid, apology and ongoing dispute
It boomed in the first few years. Estimates speak of over 100,000 paying guests per year. The Artemis became a landmark of Berlin's red light district - alongside the King George, the Golden Pudel and smaller establishments.
But there was a dark side to the fame. in 2016 came the big raid: hundreds of officers searched the building, arrests were made and allegations of pimping, human trafficking and tax evasion were made. The media ran the headline "Artemis scandal" for months. Later, many things turned out to be exaggerated: in 2023, the Berlin Senator of Justice publicly apologized to the operators and the state of Berlin paid €250,000 in compensation for unlawful detention and statements by the public prosecutor's office that damaged its reputation.
Since then, operations have continued - but the Şimşek brothers are constantly fighting for expansion and security. Since 2019, they have been trying to convert a 4000 m² warehouse directly opposite the A100 into a second brothel (32 prostitution rooms + rest rooms planned). The district blocked it for a long time, the state did not grant permission - until the courts ruled in favor of the operators at the end of 2024. The "replacement Artemis" has therefore already been approved. Whether it will ever be built now depends on the big tower plan.
2026: The leap from the red light to the high-rise business
This is exactly where the current story comes in (Tagesspiegel & Co., February 12-16, 2026). The Şimşeks no longer think in terms of floors, but in terms of meters. Instead of pimping the old building or simply extending it across the street, the entire site is to be flattened. In its place is a >200 m high tower - Berlin's new tallest secular building.
Why there of all places? The situation is brutally pragmatic:
- Directly on the A100 (good connections)
- Exhibition grounds / ICC within sight (trade fair visitors need beds)
- Halensee / City West is developing rapidly anyway
Criticism is nevertheless raining down - especially from the left. Rüdiger Deißler (Die Linke, BVV Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf) calls the project a "Tower of Babel" and a "monstrosity" in the direct line of sight to the radio tower (only 150 m high), the old West Berlin landmark. Instead of luxury towers, the city needs apartments. The district administration is keeping a low profile; the Baukollegium is to discuss the matter for the first time on February 23, 2026. So far, everything is just a concept - not an official building application.
What remains of Artemis? And what does that say about Berlin?
Even if the tower comes: the Şimşeks don't want to give up the business. The new brothel opposite the A100 could then take over the main role - a kind of "Artemis 2.0" within sight of the old square. Symbolically strong: the Rotlicht will remain, but will be topped by the Glaspalast.
History shows how Berlin has changed in 20 years. in 2005, the city stood for liberalization, hedonism and "anything goes". in 2026, it's all about investor returns, trade fair tourism and record-breaking skyscrapers - even if the starting point is a brothel.
Berlin remains Berlin: first a former warehouse becomes a mega brothel, then perhaps the tallest tower in the city. And somewhere in between lies the question of what this city actually wants: affordable apartments, more glitz or simply both - just not next to each other.
What do you think? Would you celebrate the 200-meter tower - or do you miss the old, loud, outrageous Artemis? And where should Berlin's next real skyline block actually go?
Write your opinion in the comments - the more controversial, the better. Berlin thrives on such debates.
Sources: Tagesspiegel (12.02.2026), B.Z. (13.-16.02.2026), Berliner Morgenpost, rbb24, Wikipedia article Artemis (brothel), various court reports 2016-2024
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