There will also be light in Murnau this Advent - albeit less lavishly and extensively than in previous years.
Two out of nine illuminated Christmas trees are gone, and the municipality also wants to purchase LED light chains.
The evangelical church practices voluntary renunciation.
Murnau
- The whole country should be stingy with energy: a situation in which the municipality of Murnau wants to set an example and not create an overflowing sea of lights during Advent as in earlier times.
The building committee took a close look at the "potential for saving energy" in the public Christmas lights - most recently there were nine Christmas trees with fairy lights in the municipal area every year.
It is more about the symbolic act than avoiding extremely high costs.
Around 6000 kilowatt hours of electricity, as much as an average of two three to four-person households consume in a year, are generated for all the tree lights in the village if they are on for around 40 days from 5 p.m.
You get around 1500 euros, said market builder Klaus Tworek in the meeting on Tuesday evening.
This year, in year one of the energy crisis, Murnau's politicians are not pulling the plug, but carefully turning the dimmer a little.
Two of the nine locations - the Maibaum and the Christ Church of the Protestant community, which had previously announced their abandonment - are no longer available following the unanimous decision.
The lights on the others, controlled by a timer, should only light up from 4:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.
If possible - and if moon prices are not currently being called due to astronomically high demand - Murnau is converting to LED chains and paying attention to a low-emission light color.
Mayor Rolf Beuting (ÖDP/Bürgerforum) basically called the lighting "beautiful", it brings atmosphere to the place.
He was amazed, however, by the number of trees with fairy lights:
The administration had made the suggestion to do without the lights on the large tree below the Castle Museum, which, with 2500 kilowatt hours for 25 chains, have so far consumed the most energy, as well as those on the Culture and Conference Center (KTM) and on the Untermarkt.
But the councilors didn't go along with it.
Veronika Jones-Gilch campaigned for a "good, balanced compromise", spoke out against "saving no matter what" and referred to a psychological aspect: Many will no longer be able to make it so bright at home, says the representative of Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, "it might be a sign if everything wasn't so dark outside".
Josef Bierling (CSU) campaigned for the Castle locations – there is a lot going on there – and KTM with the indoor and outdoor Christmas markets.
He doesn't see the electricity costs as an argument against lights, "it's more about the symbolism".
Wolfgang Köglmayr (More Moving) cares about shorter lighting times and the switch to LEDs.
In one case, those affected proactively refrained: representatives of the Evangelical Lutheran congregation had already indicated before the committee meeting that they did not want the building yard employees to put up a Christmas tree at their church this year.
A decision by the church council also provides for the temperature in the church, which has usually been very warm in winter, to be reduced and for some blankets to be purchased.
"It's getting cooler, not bitterly cold," assures Pastor Florian Bracker.
As always, a Moravian star should hang in the old entrance and provide some light.
"The question arose as to whether a Christmas tree was needed given the circumstances," explains Bracker - and one wanted to set a light signal, so to speak, to do justice to the "political and social situation".
For Murnau's shop operator, it's about finding a middle ground - paying attention to the consumption of resources, but also creating "the Christmas atmosphere that we need" and "not sending traditions completely across the Jordan," says Stefanie Fischer, deputy chairwoman of the association for business promotion.
Real estate owners hung the illuminated stars on the facades in the market at their own expense.
In many cases, the decoration was converted to LED years ago.
