Despite the uncertainties caused by the corona pandemic, the municipality of Ottobrunn is financially sound. While last year the municipality had to transfer money from the property budget to the administrative budget for the first time in order to be able to meet current expenses, this year it can again add one million euros to the property budget. “That shows that we’re in pretty good shape,” says chamberlain Oliver Malina. The municipal council unanimously approved the budget for 2022 and the medium-term financial planning up to 2025 on Wednesday.
At 75.9 million euros, the total volume of the budget is higher than ever before. The administrative budget accounts for 57 million euros and the asset budget for 19 million euros. As is usual in Ottobrunn, the largest source of income is income tax at 21.5 million euros (2021: 20.5 million euros). This year, too, the community wants to invest “where it makes sense and has to be,” as Malina says. The municipality has to spend a total of around 18 million euros on this. In order to finance this, on the one hand she will withdraw six million euros from the reserves. A loan of seven million euros is also to be taken out. The treasurer wants to take advantage of the low interest rates and achieve long-term fixed interest rates.
A lot of money will flow into the renovation of buildings and the new construction: One of the most money will gobble up the renovation of the municipal star house in Rubensstraße 6 this year with two million euros. A total of 1.8 million euros has also been earmarked for the construction of low-cost rental apartments on Hochackerstrasse and Gartenstrasse. 1.6 million euros are earmarked for the refurbishment and a partial new construction of the day-care center in St. Albertus Magnus. The municipality is taking money into its own hands for climate protection: the street lighting is to be converted to LED technology for 1.5 million euros.
Investment in the primary school on Friedensstrasse
As is known from Ottobrunn, all municipal councils followed the proposal for the figures. The treasurer praised the good cooperation: “I am very satisfied with how politics and administration are pulling together.” However, the factions found a few criticisms of the current budget. SPD parliamentary group leader Ruth Markwart-Kunas regretted, for example, that the budget only includes planning costs for the structural changes to the elementary school on Friedenstrasse, but not a sum in the medium-term financial planning for the construction. “The investment is important,” she said, with a view to the fact that by 2026 there is a right to all-day care and the school must be equipped for it.
Mayor Thomas Loderer (CSU) said that an architectural competition is already being prepared and that the topic is of course also considered important. According to chamberlain Malina, however, there are no possible costs yet, so these cannot be planned for either. Overall, however, Markwart-Kunas described all investments as sensible, including financing by credit. The Greens were also in favor of borrowing. However, they “painfully” missed specific measures in the budget as part of an integrated climate protection concept, as municipal councilor Dietrich Zeh said. Volker Rhein from the CSU welcomed the fact that money can be added to the reserves again in 2022. However, he regretted that the costs for a second artificial turf pitch at Haidgraben are still subject to a blocking notice.