Apparently breakthrough in sea connection

Created: 09/17/2022, 07:10

By: Peter Schiebel

There were seats for 320 visitors, in the end around 110 visitors came to Mayor Patrick Janik's first town meeting.

Because the Schlossberghalle is being renovated, it took place in the Brunnangerhalle.

© Andrea Jaksch

After almost three years of a forced break due to corona, a citizens' meeting was held in Starnberg for the first time on Thursday evening.

Mayor Patrick Janik came up with news about the lake connection, Schorn industrial park and remote bypass.

He also described the city's financial situation in clear terms.

Starnberg

– was it the bad weather?

In an unusual place (Brunnangerhalle instead of Schlossberghalle? Did the incumbent mayor’s political style, which is based on consensus instead of confrontation, play a role? Or rather the fear of corona infection? The fact is: with around 110 listeners, significantly fewer people from Starnberg came to the town hall meeting on Thursday evening than in At the last meeting in autumn 2019, for example, there were more than 400 citizens.

Be that as it may: Patrick Janik left the classic report with “the number of paving slabs laid” and the like in the drawer at his premiere.

Instead, the mayor presented those present with an unembellished view of the current situation for more than an hour and a half - with remarkable views.

"I think we need to talk about a lot of areas," he said.

And he wanted to concentrate on the essentials.

He is “more about a kind of status report”.

It was almost logical that in the course of his speech the term "turning point" was mentioned.

Finances: "We have little room for maneuver"

The basis for everything is the financial resources.

And it is anything but rosy, as Janik has repeated almost like a mantra since taking office in May 2020.

Starnberg was fortunate enough to generate lavish surpluses for many years.

The years 2018 and 2019 would have set records with trade tax revenue of around 22 million euros each.

Nevertheless, the municipal reserves, i.e. the savings account, were reduced by five million euros over the period.

"We really, really, really spent a lot of money." That should never happen again, said Janik.

The seaside resort, for example, is nice, but not one of the core tasks of a municipality.

"We treat ourselves too much in Starnberg."

He wrote the city councilors in the register: "The application is written quickly, but the consequences must also be considered." The current problem is that Starnberg has to go into debt because the current income does not cover the current costs.

"Our leeway is small."

In general, Janik called for better financial resources for the municipalities.

"We do not receive the funds that are actually required." The legal entitlement to all-day care for primary school children, for example, is doing well in the federal press conference, but the cities and municipalities have to pay for such decisions.

Or the law on the construction of public drinking fountains in green areas.

"We are at a point where we are losing our ability to act."

Because Starnberg is already facing enormous financial challenges.

"We have tasks in front of our chests that take our breath away," said Janik and listed well-known projects: Gymnasiums had arrived "in the last third of their lives", a new elementary school had to be built to replace the Schlossbergschule, as had new fire stations in Wangen and Perchting and new kindergartens.

Fire brigade: "Tasks are not achievable"

Janik only briefly discussed the fire brigade requirement plan presented in March, which includes investments in the double-digit million range.

The plan is "terrifying," he said.

"We have been given tasks that cannot be fulfilled," emphasized Janik, quoting his Pöckinger colleague Rainer Schnitzler: "We are suffocating on our standards." Now it is a matter of intensive consultation on the paper.

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Moosaik: "Will shape Starnberg"

Consultations in completely different places have meanwhile led to remarkable interim results.

The redesign of the existing commercial area between Moostraße and Petersbrunner Straße, the Moosaik project, is "a very exciting topic" and it will shape Starnberg, said Janik.

The first round of public participation is over - "there are no critical voices as far as the urban planning decision is concerned".

The immediate neighbors in particular had expressed concerns.

Schorn: "Give the project a different face"

It has been quiet around the planned new commercial area in Schorn for months.

Janik announced changes to the previously known plans for numerous new buildings with at least 3000 jobs.

"We need to take a few things more into account," he said without elaborating.

"We are in the process of giving the project a different face."

It is well known that environmentalists, citizens of Wangen and the neighboring municipality of Schäftlarn have been campaigning against the industrial park for a long time.

Janik announced that he would soon present the "other face" to the city council committees.

He clearly contradicted statements that it was already "five to twelve" for Wangen: "We're just having breakfast at nine thirty in the morning."

Sea connection: "A quantum leap"

Also reserved in terms of content, but still almost euphoric, Janik spoke about the lake connection and let it be known that the project, which has been smoldering for 35 years, is apparently about to make a breakthrough.

The mayor had said several times that the negotiations with Deutsche Bahn were very successful, and on Thursday he emphasized: “Economically we are almost in agreement, now the legal plumbing work begins.” And further: “We have a stroke of luck that we just stumbled in.” The fact that there was also a unanimous decision by the city council was “quite a quantum leap for Starnberg” after all these years.

Janik meant a decision from a non-public city council meeting before the summer break, as he explained on Friday when asked by Starnberger Merkur.

A potential solution was presented and unanimously approved.

Janik did not comment on the content.

He still asks for restraint, as both sides are known to have assured secrecy.

However, he is aiming to present the results publicly by the end of the year.

Bahnhofplatz: "The excitement of the year"

Janik is already planning a public meeting on “See and the City”, the temporary redesign of the station square, for October 18th.

The project was "the excitement of the year," said the mayor.

But the attention is justified.

"We have to try to have an overall discussion about where we want to go with the city center." If it turns out that a majority of Starnbergers want a significant proportion of car parking spaces, he will not fight that.

"I'm a mayor, not a missionary."

Bypass: "Not good in terms of political decision-making"

As far as the distant bypass is concerned, Janik wants to start a new attempt for further investigations.

As is well known, the city council stopped the project in June, although a faunistic mapping had not provided a final argument against the route.

"I didn't think this decision was politically good," said the mayor, recalling the double decision of February 2017 and announcing that he would submit a different application to the city council this year - "to take the spice out of the breath of finality".

He is not a fan of the project, said Janik.

And he is sure that there will still be knock-out criteria in the process - "with regard to the political integrity and the culture in this city" the money for investigations is well invested.

Communication: “There is a lot to talk about”

Janik addressed many other topics, including childcare and the overloading of the building authority.

He appealed to people to volunteer.

And he thanked his employees, the entire administration and the city council for the good cooperation.

The latter, too, was worth a few more comments to him.

"In the last two and a half years, we have shown how local politics can work." Neither political side enjoyed the dispute of the previous years, although he denied that the well-being of the city was at stake.

"Now we are approaching a point where personal sensitivities are also fading a little." The city council deserved applause "after many years of an outward appearance that took some getting used to".

He also wants to intensify the communication that is important to Janik in political business with the citizens.

He already announced the next citizens' assembly for March, and in future he wants to hold one every six months.

"There is much to discuss."