Oberhausen's new mayor:

"It won't be a tranquil pensioner's job"

Created: 06/08/2022, 12:00 p.m

New workplace: Oberhausen's mayor Rudolf Sonnleitner in front of the town hall, which has been renovated at a cost of millions.

© Stoebich

Oberhausen

– Around 100 days have passed since Rudolf Sonnleitner (65) was sworn in as the new mayor of Oberhausen.

We spoke to him about a first conclusion after the quarrels in advance and the most important projects in the near future.

On the one hand there was great joy about the modernized town hall with her new office, on the other hand there was a lot of trouble after the resignation of her predecessor and his deputy.

How ambivalent was your start?

It is difficult to reconcile two camps in the municipal council, but I have tried to calm the situation as much as possible.

It remains to be seen whether the matter has been settled with the recently concluded settlement of the disputed parties in court (we reported).

I quickly got used to the town hall, because I'm by no means a newcomer, but was deputy mayor for a period with very good contacts throughout the district.

With the completion of the outdoor facilities, the 2.6 million euro refurbishment of the town hall is about to be completed.

But there are still a number of tasks waiting for Oberhausen – what are the most important ones?

In any case, my priority is the water supply, which since the beginning of the year has no longer been the responsibility of the water procurement association, but of the municipality.

It is not yet clear to what extent the existing building needs to be renovated or whether an elevated tank needs to be built;

we also have to coordinate this with the water management office.

Another important topic is broadband expansion, which involves a lot of money.

800,000 euros have already been spent on this, a quarter of this amount goes to Oberhausen.

There are still expenses of 4.2 million, of which we have to pay ten percent ourselves.

It is not yet clear what the future operator concept will look like, we are currently considering it.

These two points will also be discussed at the next citizens' meeting.

How can Oberhausen handle these and other tasks financially?

We are quite happy about our reserves of 3.5 million, and the community is also debt-free.

This year we can add around 430,000 euros to the general reserve - but this money is quickly gone again when you look at how expensive a new tractor for the building yard is.

For example, 175,000 euros are only due for the construction work on the town hall car park.

Young families, in particular, do not find it easy to find affordable housing in Oberhausen either.

What is the municipality planning to do on the Waldstrasse in this context?

What can be built there later cannot be said at this point in time.

That depends on the hydrogeological and subsoil report.

And we also have to wait for the details of a flow direction and risk analysis.

In the case of the former Westenrieder property on Dorfstraße, the municipal council has come out in favor of a multi-generation house;

that is, apartments for families and singles across all age groups are to be built.

The architect wants to preserve the historical character of the ensemble.

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What about flood protection?

There is an intercommunal protection concept for Eglfing, Huglfing and Oberhausen;

the planning for the tender is currently underway.

This is a lengthy topic and will certainly keep us busy for some time.

So a lot of work for the municipal council and administration.

What else is planned?

There is a plethora of smaller tasks throughout the year, of which the general public is relatively unaware.

So this summer we are building a second play level in the children's home at the Storchennest, the community archive has to be sorted, a public toilet is planned for the funeral parlor at the parish church, the cycle path to Polling is to be realized, in the medium term we need a new fire station - there is no work to do it certainly won't be until the end of the election period.

Doesn't that sound like a volunteer mayor can handle all these tasks as a part-time job?

Honor is one thing, official business is another.

Seriously: With less than 40 hours a week, I hardly got there in the first hundred days.

But it was quite clear to me that this would not be a tranquil retirement job, and it gives me great pleasure to see how things are progressing together in our village.

There are also wonderful experiences like my first wedding as a registrar.

Our new grand piano in the town hall was played, the bride and groom cried and I was hardly less nervous than the two.

These are beautiful and moving moments that are not easily forgotten.

Questions:

Peter Stoebich