At the training ground of the Ottobrunn footballers at the Haidgraben, it gets crowded, especially in autumn and winter; especially when the weather is bad and the natural grass pitch cannot be played on. Then all that remains is the only artificial turf pitch in the west of the municipality. Because of these bottlenecks in the training sessions, the two Ottobrunn football clubs TSV and FC had each submitted their own applications for the construction of a second artificial turf field – this request was now rejected by the municipal council’s building committee with a stalemate of seven to seven votes.
The system is too expensive, especially for the Greens
It is above all financial policy concerns within the parliamentary groups of the Greens, the SPD and the Ottobrunn Citizens’ Association (BVO) that have led to their negative attitude. Because the municipal reserves are dwindling, while expenditure remains at a high level. “In view of the tense budgetary situation, we cannot agree,” said Greens parliamentary group spokeswoman Doris Popp on Monday evening at the building committee meeting. She advocated only renovating the existing artificial turf pitch this year and, as suggested by the town hall administration, building a new floodlight system with modern, energy-saving LED lights on the entire training ground. A million euros for a training ground is out of the question, said Popp.
More than 750 athletes – mainly children and young people – play football at TSV and FC Ottobrunn.
(Photo: Sebastian Gabriel)
Sports officer Martin Bruno Radig (SPD), who is also deputy head of department at TSV Ottobrunn, drew attention to the problems of the two sports clubs. In total, more than 750 players – mainly children and young people – trained in around 30 teams at both clubs. “The problem is that the pitch with natural grass often has to be closed or played over because of the weather,” said Radig. “But the game operations plus preparation time together form a longer period of time than the playability of the two existing fields. And the hall capacities are also limited – so it has to be played outside.” On a second artificial turf pitch, league games could also be played in autumn and winter in almost any weather, he campaigned for the new pitch.
“We have to adapt the infrastructure to the growth.”
Mayor Thomas Loderer (CSU) also campaigned for a second artificial turf field, the cost of which is estimated at around 970,000 euros, and advocated implementation before the end of this year, namely as a highly modern, ecologically exemplary facility with olive seed grit instead of plastic granules. According to Loderer, the tartan track, which is also completely dilapidated, and the surface on the existing artificial turf pitch should then be renewed in 2024 – at a cost of another 660,000 euros. The mayor emphasized that a frugal community like Ottobrunn could handle such a project, and it would be an investment in the future. “The demand from the clubs will continue to rise because the population is growing so quickly,” said Loderer. “We have to adapt the infrastructure to growth. That’s part of the basic service if you take the concerns of children and young people seriously.”
According to the current decision, however, only the existing square will be renewed this year, the floodlight system will be rebuilt and equipped with LED light. In addition, the tartan track will be replaced in the coming year. However, the municipal council has the last word and will again deal with the subject of a second artificial turf pitch at its meeting on January 25th. As of now, the game is completely open.