Hafen
Follow the Rheinuferpromenade past the 234 meter (768 foot) high Rheinturm telecom tower, and you'll find yourself at the harbor. This area has changed in appearance a few times over the last century. Many parts of the once active harbor were closed in 1976. Others were simply abandoned. The Landtag brought new prestige to this area in 1988. About ten years of construction have made the harbor the most modern and trendy area of the city. In the early 1990s a tunnel was built to keep the traffic out of the city center. The regional broadcaster WDR finished its light-blue building in 1991. In 1998 the Stadttor, a glass-column gate to the city, opened its doors. The unusual buildings directly at the shore, one white, one red, one silvery, were finished last year. The architect: is Frank O. Gehry, who also built the Guggenheim Museum in Barcelona. The area is becoming a central location for media firms, broadcasters and production companies. Many new bars and stylish restaurants have joined the so-called "media-mile."