Mayor Mindy Konwitschny (SPD) spoke almost continuously for a good two hours, although her voice is still scratched by an illness that she has survived, as she let the 120 attendees know at the beginning of this town hall meeting in Höhenkirchen-Siegertsbrunn. After that, however, the head of the town hall hurried through her presentation smoothly and quickly, until now, when it is the turn of the citizens to submit their applications, she suddenly comes to a standstill. “Are there any questions about the gravel?” Konwitschny inquires and looks amazed at the multi-purpose hall. After all, this topic has been on the minds of many people in the community more than any other.
But that evening there were no questions about the controversial gravel quarrying on the Muna site, which is why Konwitschny himself explained the current status. Accordingly, the Hohenbrunn entrepreneur recently started the preparatory work on the property at the edge of the forest to the east of Hohenbrunner Straße, but not yet with the actual dismantling. The fact that he is showing a certain pace is not due to complaints from residents and the Hohenbrunn community – “they have no suspensive effect,” explains the mayor. “But he’s doing it quickly now because the ground isn’t frozen yet.” Konwitschny emphasizes that the municipality, which has concluded an urban development contract for gravel extraction with the entrepreneur, is in close contact with the supervisory authority. “Everything that has been done there so far has been done in consultation with the district office.”
Nevertheless, the gravel quarrying on the Muna site remains a nuisance for many people in Höhenkirchen-Siegertsbrunn – and in Hohenbrunn, where the trucks will primarily rush through. In her speech at the citizens’ meeting, Konwitschny, on the other hand, primarily addresses the positive developments in the community. In just a few weeks, six charging stations for electric cars are to be put into operation at various locations in the municipal area. It will take a little longer to complete the renovation work in the old pharmacy: a family center is to move in there in the spring. The municipality provided the property at Hirschwinkel for a natural pool in the village. Now it is solely up to the Höhenkirchen-Siegertsbrunn Naturbad association to raise the financing for such an outdoor pool, Konwitschny emphasized when asked by a citizen.
A dedicated geothermal well is in the pipeline
The topic of climate protection takes up a lot of space in her remarks. An investigation has shown that in the planned expansion of the regenerative power supply in the town, open-space photovoltaics and wind power have the greatest potential. The challenge with the former is “that we need large areas for this,” says Konwitschny. When it comes to wind power, the municipality relies on the three planned plants in the Höhenkirchner forest. However, the most important factor in the planned move away from fossil fuels is the supply of heat. The municipality wants to set up a district heating network here, explains Konwitschny, for which a working group is currently being formed with several neighboring municipalities.
As a first step, the lines would then have to be laid, explains the mayor. “The second is the question: How do we get hot water?” Here are two options. Either the community will connect to the network of Stadtwerke München. “Or we can build a system ourselves,” says Konwitschny. “We’ve already secured a claim halfway here.” In this case, of course, an interim solution would be needed, probably a combined heat and power plant. Irrespective of the path taken, Mindy Konwitschny says it is important to consider when entering geothermal energy: “It will be a long process that will tie up a lot of money in future households.”