the GBI, who were collectively nicknamed "Speer's Kindergarten". Most of the Kindergarteners were not Nazi Party members, since Speer found that Party duties interfered with working time, and the Kindergarten was expected to work long hours. Speer had Hitler's permission to hire non-Nazis, so the GBI became something of a political sanctuary. Wolters later wrote of his views at this time: I had viewed Hitler and his movement with some skepticism, but when the abolition of the multi-party mess removed the obscenity of unemployment, and the first 1,000 kilometers of autobahns opened up a new era of mobility, I too saw the light: this was the time when Churchill said he hoped Great Britain would have a man like Hitler in time of peril, and when high church dignitaries and distinguished academics paid the Führer homage. Much of Wolters' work at the GBI was connected to Hitler's plan for the large scale reconstruction of Berlin. The dictator had placed Speer in charge of this plan. The centerpiece of the scheme was a grand boulevard, long, dubbed by Speer as the Prachtstrasse (Street of Magnificence) or "North–South Axis", for which the main design responsibility was delegated to Wolters. Wolters was also responsible for transport rings in the new Berlin, for museums, and for the GBI's press office. In 1939, Wolters became responsible for the architecture portion of the magazine, Die Kunst im Deutschen Reich (Art in the German Reich). Wolters made several trips abroad in connection with his duties for the GBI. He visited the United States to study advanced transport systems, and Paris for the 1937 international exposition there. In 1939, Joseph Goebbels appointed him Exhibition Commissioner. Wolters took charge of organizing German architectural exhibits presented in other countries. Until 1943, Wolters traveled to other European capitals, and in addition to his duties as commissioner, gathered political intelligence. On his return, Wolters passed along his insights to Speer and some of these thoughts reached Hitler's ears. In 1940, Wolters, a longtime diarist, suggested to Speer that he begin keeping a Chronik, or chronicle of the GBI's activities. Speer agreed, and instructed department heads to send Wolters raw material for the Chronik on a regular basis. Among other matters, the Chronik detailed the GBI's responsibility for administering a 1939 amendment to the Nuremberg Laws which allowed Aryan landlords to evict Jewish tenants with virtually no notice. For example, the entry for