Weitnau / Missen-Wilhams - Almost in disbelief about their success, the actors in the state-funded “Alpine model region” presented the projects they had initiated over the past three years and some of them had already been implemented.
The topics that have been causing movement and a sensation in the two communities since 2018 range from the completed, newly designed hiking trail “Carl Hirnbein” to the “Weitnauer Kalb” initiative to year-round tourism in Missen.
At that time, Weitnau and Missen received recognition from the Bavarian Ministry of Agriculture as a model region and thus the opportunity to put new ideas close to home into practice with state funds, around 360,000 euros.
Motivated brokers, pioneers and inventors
Project manager Manuela Müller-Gaßner from Sibratshofen found the right words: “I am incredibly proud of what our inventors, machinists and pioneers have achieved.” Max Lang from the responsible office for rural development in Krumbach praised the initiated projects as “flagship products for Weitnau and misses, which can be a role model for other communities ”.
The second Alpine model region is, by the way, the Schlierach and Leitzach valleys in Upper Bavaria.
He emphasized that the funds were invested sensibly, there was not a single “flop”, all those involved were “highly motivated”, and the office would continue to support them.
With the “Alpine model region” campaign, the aim is to “create a creative atmosphere that inspires people in the countryside over and over again”.
Carl Hirnbein as an umbrella brand
The former mayors Streicher, Weitnau, and Von Laer, Missen, applied for the contract as a model region in 2017, now both could not hide their satisfaction with the success and received the applause of the around 30 actors present in the historic office building of Weitnau .
"You get the feeling that the spirit of the Allgäu pioneer Carl Hirnbein lives," said one of the participants.
In the 19th century, Hirnbein converted agriculture in the Allgäu to dairy and cheese-making and is considered a pioneer of modern tourism.
So it's no wonder that Hirnbein has been installed as a new umbrella brand for his two hometowns of Weitnau and Missen, with which the two new community leaders Martina Wilhelm, Missen, and Florian Schmid, Weitnau, are going into the future.
Wide range of topics
Sixteen projects have started in the three years since the "Alpine Model Region" was recognized. One of them was, for example, the search for a modern senior citizens' dormitory that would make aging worth living: Corresponding discussions about a plot of land for the future location are already underway. The future of young people in Missen and Weitnau is also actively being considered: a former tavern is to be converted into a youth club there, and a hip construction trailer has already been approved as a future quarter for children and young people. Architect Hans-Peter Meyer reported on the planned design of the new Weitnau town center, Aron Holtermann gave a lecture on the revitalization of the ski lift on the Thaler Höhe, which thanks to donations amounting to several hundred thousand euros could be saved from collapse.At the foot of the ski area, five exclusive tree chalets have formed a further foundation for year-round tourism in Missen-Wilhams since 2020.
Forest conversion and Allgäu olives
Noteworthy are the efforts to set up models in terms of climate compatibility and sustainable agriculture. Farmer Christine Bajohr runs a grazing project on the climatically exposed southern slope of the Kugel at an altitude of 1,000 meters, which is now running as a study by the Technical University of Munich and attracts a large number of students. Helen and Matthias Dünser from Oberstixner Hof are about to introduce the permaculture economy with the help of old cultivated plants: "Herbal beer from the Gagelstrauch or Allgäu 'olives' from the fruits of the olive - we will try it," laughs Helen Dünser. And forest owner Peter Freytag is currently putting stylized silver firs as information steles in the woods:"The silver fir should become the new key tree for the conversion of our forests - it is more climate-resistant than the spruce and typical of the Allgäu." The University of Augsburg supports the project.
Just a beginning
Much remains to be done.
An investor is being sought for a new village meeting point in the old forge in Sibratshofen, the subject of bicycle-friendliness will soon come back on the agenda in Weitnau and Missen, the animal-friendly and environmentally friendly marketing of local calves has started so successfully that this idea is now also in Niedersonthofen is realized.
A balance sheet of the “Alpine model region”, which citizens can now easily download to their smartphones via an app: Your municipality sheet is the first in Oberallgäu to be published digitally.
Carl Hirnbein would surely have enjoyed it.
Also read: The “Living Museums” project starts on the Sebaldweg
