Museum Selma: A new location in Cologne city centre is being considered
17 March 2026
Cologne, 17.03.2026 – The Museum Selma will not be built at the planned site on the Hallen Kalk site. According to expert reports and planning documents, it is not feasible to construct the museum there within the available construction budget. One option for still realising the museum project is to locate it in the cultural centre at Neumarkt. The supporting organisation DOMiD, the City of Cologne, the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Federal Government have held initial consultation meetings on this matter. The alternative site offers a range of advantages for the inner-city cultural quarter at Neumarkt. The City of Cologne administration will submit a corresponding review mandate to the Cologne City Council for a decision at its meeting on Thursday, 19 March 2026. Time is of the essence: federal funding for the Museum Selma is at risk of expiring at the end of the year.
Rising construction costs in Germany are currently hampering building projects across the country. Now this is also affecting plans for DOMiD’s national migration museum: The Museum Selma will not be built in Hall 70 on the former KHD site in Hallen Kalk as originally planned.
Robert Fuchs, Managing Director of the organising body DOMiD: “We take a responsible approach to taxpayers’ money and must therefore pull the ripcord. When the funding for the construction was approved at the time, the museum in the hall in Kalk would have been feasible. Due to current cost developments, this is no longer possible. We deeply regret this and would have liked to have continued supporting the cultural development of the Osthof Kalk. We are therefore all the more delighted by the City of Cologne’s offer to examine the possibility of integrating our museum into the building on Neumarkt.”
Stefan Charles, Deputy Mayor for Art and Culture of the City of Cologne: “A museum about migration fits perfectly into the centre of our cosmopolitan city, which is shaped by migration. At the same time, we see great potential to further strengthen the cultural quarter at Neumarkt with its museums, the City Library and the Adult Education Centre.”
Perspectives of migrants are important for social cohesion
The state government of North Rhine-Westphalia continues to support the project. This pleases Ahmet Sezer, co-founder and board member of DOMiD: “We are grateful for the continuous political support in establishing a museum that appropriately represents our migrant society. Our dream began 35 years ago: to enrich Germany’s history with the perspectives of the people who have immigrated here. Given the current rise of anti-migration and anti-democratic forces, it is all the more important to tell the history of this country through a multitude of voices.”
Background: From the funding commitment to the preliminary design phase of the project in Kalk
In 2020, the federal government and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia had allocated a total of €44.26 million to DOMiD’s Migration Museum in their budgets. The COVID-19 pandemic led to repeated delays in the years that followed, meaning that it was not until 2024 that DOMiD, equipped with fundings, was able to move forward the planning, supported by a project management team and a master planning team. In a Europe-wide tender process, DOMiD commissioned the renowned Atelier Brückner, which specialises in cultural buildings, as the master planner in April 2025.
The project then gained momentum: within a very short time, a design and comprehensive plans were drawn up, and expert reports commissioned. In August 2025, the first cost estimate was available, which showed that the funds available were insufficient to realise the museum in Hall 70 in Kalk. The extent of the renovation required for the over 100-year-old industrial hall was greater than had to be anticipated. Added to this were the drastically rising construction costs in Germany: the pandemic, supply chain issues, increases in the cost of raw and building materials, Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the resulting rises in energy prices, as well as other factors, have contributed to a 50% increase in construction index costs (2020–2025), according to the Federal Statistical Office. DOMiD immediately sought dialogue with city, state and federal authorities. After months of negotiations, it became clear that the estimated additional 33 million euros required for the Kalk site could not be raised by any of the parties involved, given the strained budgetary situation. Consequently, whilst DOMiD was able to submit all technical construction documents on time, it was unable to demonstrate the financing of the additional costs. “We are grateful to all those involved with the federal government who supported us in getting the deadline for submitting the application documents extended by one year to 31 December 2026,” says DOMiD Managing Director Robert Fuchs.
What’s next for the Museum Selma
At its meeting on 19 March 2026, Cologne City Council will discuss the review mandate regarding the integration of the Museum Selma into the Neumarkt Cultural Centre. DOMiD has submitted its space requirements to the City of Cologne. Following the council’s decision, numerous reviews would take place and negotiations on the terms between the City of Cologne and the funding bodies would begin. The Cologne City Council would pass a further resolution in due course regarding the final usage concept, the structural implementation and the terms of a lease or usage agreement. A verifiable funding application containing a complete draft design and cost estimate must be submitted by the end of the year; otherwise, the funding will lapse.
The Neumarkt Cultural Centre opened in 2010 and currently houses the Rautenstrauch-Joest-Museum, the Museum Schnütgen, the Cologne Museum Service and the FORUM of the Cologne Adult Education Centre. Adjacent to it are the main building of the Adult Education Centre and the Central Library, which is currently undergoing a complete refurbishment.
Robert Fuchs: “If our Migration Museum moves closer to other museums and educational institutions, we see major benefits for all parties: from collaboration on content and shared use of space to a wide range of educational and outreach programmes. This will create high-quality cultural education opportunities for a diverse urban community. A new three-museum-complex has the potential to become a magnet for people from North Rhine-Westphalia and far beyond.”