Watergate Mentioned as Potential Successor to The Former SchwuZ Site

The future of the empty KINDL Brauerei complex in Neukölln is back in focus after Berlin’s Senator for Culture, Sarah Wedl-Wilson, highlighted the site as a potential home for established club institutions. During a recent meeting of the Senate’s Committee on Culture, she cited Watergate as an example of a club that could benefit from moving into an existing cultural space. She noted that this was not based on any talks with the Watergate team.

Watergate has been without a permanent venue since closing its Falckensteinstrasse location at the end of 2024. Its presence in the city has continued through Watergate Records and seasonal programming, including this summer’s events at Sage Beach with artists such as Kerri Chandler and Sven Väth.

The Rollbergstraße building has been shuttered since SchwuZ held its final party on 1 November 2025. SchwuZ had spent almost five decades in the former brewery, with a capacity of roughly 1200, and was one of Europe’s most significant queer club institutions. The club declared insolvency in mid-2025 and ultimately could not secure a path forward.

The Clubcommission is currently searching for a smaller, sustainable location to preserve the SchwuZ project. For the KINDL Brauerei itself, its future remains undecided, but any decision will carry weight given the site’s central role in Berlin’s nightlife history.