If you look at Feldkirchen with a satellite, the main thing that catches your eye is a huge, greyish area in the north. Almost 270,000 square meters are vacant here – a valuable area for a municipality that otherwise has hardly any free land available. If the town hall administration has its way, the space technology of the future should be created on the area: Feldkirchen is one of several municipalities that are courting the Ottobrunn-based rocket company Isar Aerospace. Last spring, the young company announced that it was looking for a new location to produce its launch vehicles for transporting satellites into space. Since then, among others, Haar and Taufkirchen have also entered the race.
In Feldkirchen, a way has been sought for around 15 years to reintegrate the area north of the railway line, which was previously used for gravel quarrying, into the town. According to Mayor Andreas Janson (Independent Voters’ Association), the property owner, the real estate group CA Immo, often approached the municipality with new concepts and suggestions – most recently with the idea of bringing Isar Aerospace to Feldkirchen. The local council liked it.
According to company spokeswoman Tina Schmitt, the enormous free space on the former gravel base and the freedom that this gives for further development are aspects that make Feldkirchen attractive for Isar Aerospace. Good transport links are also an advantage. Because the current plans envisage connecting the area directly to the adjacent train station to the south and the center of Feldkirch by means of a through-hole.
According to the plans of the planners, a completely new district is to develop around Isar Aerospace. Up to six factory halls for rocket construction are to be built centrally, which, according to architect Florian von Hayek, can be up to 50,000 square meters in size. Of course, the thought of such large buildings can be daunting, he admits. But the planners want to take advantage of the topography: when the gravel pit is filled, it should be about five meters lower than the surrounding area. “As a result, the halls appear less dominant,” says Hayek.
According to the architect, the potential new location for the rocket builders should be surrounded by a neighborhood that is as lively as possible. In addition to office buildings, residential development is planned, and local amenities and childcare are also to be secured. The planners also want to offer areas for recreation and integrate the directly adjacent Heimstettener See into the quarter. “The great quality of this lake should be brought to the place,” announces Hayek. The area is to be developed not only via the existing Seestraße, but also via an extension of Dornacher Straße.
For all the considerations, visualizations and concepts: Feldkirchen is crucially dependent on Isar Aerospace in terms of planning. Until it is clear where the company wants to produce its rockets in the future, there is uncertainty. According to Mayor Janson, a decision could be made in the spring. “Of course it can be that we put a lot of energy into it and in the end nothing comes of it.” If Isar Aerospace decides against Feldkirchen, “we’ll start planning for this area all over again.”