Cool places in Dortmund: New map shows shadow spaces and drinking fountains!

Cool places in Dortmund: New map shows shadow spaces and drinking fountains!

The summer heat is back and with it the concern for cool retreat in our cities grows. In Dortmund, this topic has now been devoted intensively and presented a digital cool-place card. This innovative map shows shady places in the city center that invite you to cool off. An offer that could be of great benefit not only for the Dortmund population, but also for the numerous visitors to the city. Ruhr24 reports that the maps, green areas, public drinking wells and even underground railways comprise that are accessible free of charge.

On this digital map, some of the most shady locations are recorded, including the Westpark, Friedensplatz and the Stadtgarten. There are also pleasant shade with drinking water wells in the popular places in the city center such as the Westenhellweg next to the Petrikirchhof and the Propsteihof on Silberstrasse. Overall, the card shows numerous places where the heat can be escaped, which contributes to relieving the heat load in urban areas. The city of Dortmund is also planning to constantly expand the map to add more cool places and interiors, as can be read in the detailed overview on dortmund.de.

an action plan for cooler heads

But what is behind this offer? The background is the city of Dortmund's heat action plan, which aims to better protect the population from the consequences of heat. Part of this plan are measures to raise awareness and acute help in heat waves, which is particularly important for vulnerable groups such as older people, children and pregnant women. The card was created in the summer of 2023 by senior citizens' offices and the environmental office and not only offers an overview of cooler places, but also information on accessibility and other services.

The problem of summer heat is not only taken seriously in Dortmund, but also in other Bavarian cities. Municipalities such as Munich, Nuremberg and Straubing also take measures to help citizens to help the heat load. The already mentioned Minister of Health Judith Gerlach warns that particularly sealed areas and dense traffic contribute to the heating of the cities. According to the Federal Environment Agency, the annual number of heat victims in Germany is around 3,000, and the tendency is rising. Measures such as the provision of public drinking fountains and interactive maps should help to make the weather conditions more bearable [weather.com] (https://weather.com/de-de/wetter/news/2025-06-12-hitzschutz-in-bayern-stadt-auf-auf-aktplane- and

cool places in Dortmund

Here is an overview of the current shady places that are recorded on the new card:

• Westpark Dortmund
• Westenhellweg next to the Petrikirchhof (shadow place with drinking water fountain)
• Propsteihof on Silberstraße (shadow place and drinking water fountain)
• Friedensplatz (Schattenplatz)
• Stadtgarten (Schattenplatz)
• Ostfriedhof (three shadow places)
• Dortmund Wall (four shadow places)

In addition, the city center with seven refill stations for free drinking water offer the opportunity to refresh themselves. In the following locations, thirsty can fill up their bottles free of charge:

• Thier gallery (at Starbucks and Globetrotter)
• Book road (in veterinary practice for small animals Scharnhorst)
• Apostar pharmacy at the Stadtgarten
• LBS-Bausparkasse Dortmund Brackel on Westenhellweg
• Consumer Center NRW, corner of Konzerthauspassage
• Zaquensis Service Center Dortmund am Burgwall

These initiatives show that the city of Dortmund and other Bavarian municipalities actively deal with the challenge of heat and want to offer the citizens a better quality of life. If summer reaches us again with full heat, such measures are worth gold.