Cellars in Schwabing have been under water for over a year.
Despite a petition, the city does nothing.
From Thursday there should be momentum in the matter.
The constant roar of a water pump disturbs the silence.
The musty smell of cold, damp concrete hangs in the air.
Residents and local politicians stand in a mini-lake in rubber boots - where cars should actually be parked.
For a good year now, groundwater has been pressing into the cellars here in Genterstrasse and Osterwaldstrasse (Schwabing).
Many residents are desperate.
They are confronted with the problem anew every day.
There is no escape.
The cellars of around 40 buildings here are, as reported, flooded after the groundwater level rose by around 50 centimeters in one year.
There are various reasons for this (e.g. compaction due to new buildings, damming up on the rain overflow canal).
The residents agree: It cannot go on like this.
They urge the city to act.
Flood in Schwabing: Listed house in danger
In the listed building on Genter Straße, which was built in 1971 by the award-winning Milbertshofen architect Otto Steidle, the cellars fill up has been the case since 2015.
However, the lake in the basement has been in permanent condition since May 2020.
“On June 10, 2020, the water was in our cellar on Osterwaldstrasse,” says home owner Wolfgang Dirrigl.
His grandfather built the house in 1938.
In 1987 a storage room was added.
There were never any problems until June 2020. Dirrigl had everything renovated and sealed by a specialist company for thousands of euros.
But the measures have to pause.
The walls have been damp again for two weeks.
He complains: "The city lets us drown mercilessly."
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Wolfgang Dirrigl is amazed: over 213 million liters have been pumped out since February.
© Oliver Bodmer
The residents have already done a lot against the flood horror.
They pay for pumps out of their own pocket.
The Bavarian State Parliament unanimously approved a petition.
“In my two and a half years in the state parliament, this has only happened this once,” says Christian Hierneis, environmental policy spokesman for the Greens.
This calls on the city to stop the flooding.
But: Nothing has happened - now for exactly 131 days.
Flood Schwabing: Talks begin on Thursday
Robert Brannekämper (CSU) speaks of multiple organ failure.
The chairman of the committee for science and art threatens to file a criminal complaint against the building department for the damage to a monument.
On the part of the Department for Climate and Environmental Protection, which is responsible for the groundwater, it says, “The heavy rain events did not have a negative effect on the water levels in the Genter Straße area. The water levels are still within the expected fluctuation range. ”Which measures are now being taken by whom will be discussed in a mediation process that starts on Thursday.