As of: March 1, 2024, 2:54 p.m
By: Jörg Domke
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Michael Stolze on Thursday in the Bürgersaal.
© Dziemballa
The resignation announcement by Markt Schwaben's mayor Michael Stolze shocked many people in the town and beyond.
Now the 53-year-old is talking about his motives.
Markt Schwaben
– Michael Stolze seems almost relieved on the EZ telephone, almost liberated.
As if a huge stone had just fallen from his heart, as if someone had lifted a heavy burden from his shoulders.
In any case, there is no hint of annoyance in his voice.
The mayor of Markt Schwaben is sitting in his office late at night, doing his office work outside of usual hours, as he often does, and waiting for his appointment in the evening opposite in the Bürgersaal, where the first sustainability forum of the local active circles is being held.
Stolze knows that he surprised many in his immediate and extended circle with his decision to resign from his position at the head of the community on May 31st.
Some were even downright shocked.
He didn't have to take everything that happened on his own responsibility, a market town councilor told EZ confidentially on Friday, March 1st.
Stolze, 53, decided otherwise.
Talked to the family first
At first he declared his intention to resign to his family.
His brother Andreas, spokesman for the Free Party, was also involved early on.
Stolze carefully considered the order in which who should be informed and when.
Also that the town hall staff should be first in line - and only then the advisory board with its deputies and parliamentary group spokespersons.
There he reports that he submitted an application for dismissal to the market town on February 27th.
He had already formulated the letter about this at the local council meeting on February 22nd.
The meeting in which Stolze's hat string was clearly torn for the first time because once again elected officials were unable to discuss an upcoming issue in the targeted manner that Stolze was used to from his time in the private sector.
Meeting culture in Markt Schwaben horrifies the mayor
The current meeting culture left him “horrified and perplexed”.
“I’m just not a professional politician,” he sighs.
And says that he has now come to the decision that he is no longer qualified to hold the office of mayor.
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What had happened there?
Finally it rained down on him from all sides.
School construction continues to be delayed, we are now talking about September.
The urban development concept (ISEK) mutated into an increasingly complicated structure.
And then there was and is the dispute over the asylum home.
I misjudged that there are people who have problems with asylum seekers in their area.
Michael Stolze, mayor
Everything here has to be considered together.
The latter has fundamentally changed the situation there, says Stolze: protests, an initiative for a citizens' initiative, a crystal-clear legal opinion in Ebersberg and Munich, a majority decision in the council against the Ziegelstadel location, the determination that the request was illegal.
“I misjudged,” he says, “that there are people who have problems with asylum seekers in their area.”
Stolze talks about having a different set of values here, which he doesn't want to give up.
However, attempts to resolve the conflict have failed.
It shouldn't have gotten to this point, he says thoughtfully.
And that he was in a position to at least intervene as mayor at the end of January 2023.
In retrospect, it was a mistake to continue to be convinced that the Ziegelstadel location was suitable.
Self-critically, he adds that he has placed his set of values above the interests of citizens.
Against this background, he no longer fulfilled his role as an authority that, first and foremost, has to represent the interests of citizens.
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