Wartenberg: "The parish church is also a landmark" - debate about a special subsidy for a chapel on Nikolaiberg

The Wartenberg market supports the renovation of the chapel on the Nikolaiberg with five percent of the costs, up to a maximum of 16,250 euros.

Deviating from the usual practice, there is another 10,000 euros on top - because of the exposed location and the role as a landmark of the market.

This decision had to be well justified, because at the same time the market council had received an application – also from the church administration – for the church tower renovation of the Nativity of Mary.

The usual subsidy procedure applies there.

Wartenberg – The money will be provided in the 2023 budget.

There was an intense debate about the Nikolaiberg, because initially ten percent had been requested.

The market council would have said goodbye to the previous line.

Only the CSU faction had committed itself to ten percent, but could not prevail.

Everyone else said it would be better to stick with the current practice as it could set a precedent.

The tight municipal coffers played a major role in the committed debate.

3. Mayor Carla Marx (Neue Mitte) had said on another occasion: "We have to turn over every cent." Reminded of this statement by several colleagues, she stuck to her line.

Marx also said that the evangelical church would come up with an application for a subsidy, and that could also be ten percent.

Several councils expressed fears that nothing at all could happen if the market didn't come in with the higher percentage.

Michael Paulini (SPD) had flipped through the template a page, found the application for a subsidy for the tower renovation of the parish church, where five percent was mentioned again - and 28,350 euros.

"The parish church is also a landmark," he took apart the argumentation of the CSU a bit.

In fact, nobody wanted to contradict that.

Mayor Christian Pröbst (CSU) tried the compromise of giving an extra 10,000 euros for the church on the Nikolaiberg, just because of the dominant optical effect at the top of the "most beautiful place in the whole of Wartenberg" (quote from Bernd Scheumaier at the cultural summer).

Pröbst thus prevailed with 13:7 votes.

The standard grant of five percent was approved unanimously, as was the five percent for the renovation of the parish church tower.

The cost estimate for this has recently risen from a good 490,000 to almost 570,000 euros.