Kirchseeon’s Mayor Jan Paeplow (CSU) announced that the aim was to create the greatest possible transparency in the development of the former railway sleeper site. And it seems that the citizens take their town hall boss at his word. In any case, the desire to participate in the planning and design of the new town center is enormous. Around 100 inquiries have already been received from citizens in the town hall who want to participate in one of the working groups, as Paeplow said at the most recent meeting of the municipal council on Monday evening. There the mayor also announced the further timetable for the mega-project.
The investors of the Hamburg ECE Group want to create around 1,500 apartments for up to 3,000 people in the coming years in the south of Kirchseeon. It is one of the largest residential construction projects that has ever existed in the district of Ebersberg – but the citizens of the market town are also concerned and anxious. “The issue of traffic in particular moves people,” as Mayor Paeplow said. So far, the City Hall has received the most feedback for this area. At an information event in the packed ATSV hall at the end of July, the municipality called for active participation in the development of the former railway sleeper site. About 100 people have responded to this request so far. “And there will be even more when we start properly,” Paeplow is convinced.
The working groups should develop ideas for topics such as the environment, transport or social affairs
The working groups on various subject areas – in addition to transport, these include the areas of social affairs and society, urban planning or the environment and sustainability – are then to begin their work after the political summer break. However, the first ideas have already been received in the town hall, said Paeplow. In addition to the working groups, a steering group made up of representatives from the community, investors and experts will accompany the project. “We want to get into the fairway and see how we can develop the whole thing,” is the mayor’s outlook for the coming weeks.
The exact dates for the first meetings would be announced as soon as the administration in the town hall was fully occupied again. According to Paeplow, the detailed planning is still being worked on, and he emphasized once again how important transparent planning for the new Kirchseeon town center is to him. All information about the current project can be found on the website of the market community, and the current status should also be a fixed item on the agenda at future municipal council meetings. “The active involvement of the citizens in the development process of the former railway sleeper factory is very important to the Kirchseeon market,” says the administration.
The success of the project depends to a large extent on the goodwill of the people of Kirchseeon
Ultimately, it will also depend on convincing the residents of the market town of the project. Many are still critical of the project, as was shown not least at the information event in July. There, a whole series of citizens expressed their concerns about the planned development, which could fundamentally change the townscape of Kirchseeon. In addition to the transport connection, the questions also revolved around the construction process as such, which is likely to take a lot of time and cause a lot of noise and dirt. So far, the remediation of the property contaminated with creosote, mercury and other toxic materials has not been clarified. For this, too, the investor will still have to submit concrete plans, which in the best-case scenario will be well received by the people of Kirchseeon. Because transparency alone is of little value if the citizens do not ultimately follow suit.