Project in Homberg (Efze): temporary pioneering work

For six months they swap city life for country life: In Homberg, 20 “pioneers” are developing ideas on how the small town can be made more attractive. The bureaucratic hurdles are less high than feared.

Katrin Hitziggrad stands in front of an old shoe polishing machine, left behind by the previous tenant. The former orthopedic specialist shop has been empty for a long time, like so many other shops in the old town center of Homberg (Efze).

This is exactly what the 33-year-old real estate specialist and urban designer from Thuringia wants to change. Together with her colleagues from the “Summer of Pioneers”, she wants to set up a “Makersspace” here, a kind of open workshop for young people.

“It’s about setting new impulses. With a pop-up store or a temporary gallery, the street scene changes and so does the perception of many citizens,” says Hitziggrad. Ideally, the temporary use should then become a permanent solution. The native of Jena has already demonstrated in numerous projects in Thuringia how vacancies can be given a new shine.

From the big city to the country

Using empty shops for creative ideas is one of the many projects at the “Summer of Pioneers”. That’s 20 city dwellers who have been living in the country for six months since May. The “pioneers” are supposed to bring ideas to the provinces and pay 150 euros per person in return. There is a furnished apartment, internet and a co-working space. So that the participants can come into contact with each other, they all live around the market square.

Organizer Jonathan Linker started the project with the support of the city. He comes from the region, lived in Darmstadt and Frankfurt for a long time and founded “HOMEberger” a few years ago – a network of young entrepreneurs who want to show that a modern and innovative life is also possible in the country.

“I believe that we have to bring living spaces and people more into connection with one another. That means, above all, digital developments that are currently predominantly taking place in the city are brought to the countryside more strongly.”

“A bit like in paradise”

Anna Groos came to Homberg with her husband Tobias and their two sons Carlo and Joscha. You live in a small half-timbered house with a view of the market square, the innovation consultant’s office is on the ground floor in the former tourist information office. They sublet their apartment in downtown Darmstadt for six months.

After almost three months in the country, she sees advantages above all. “I experience very little bureaucracy here and very few hurdles if you feel like doing something. For someone who is used to the narrowness of the city, the many free spaces here feel a bit like paradise.” Nevertheless, the four of them cannot imagine a permanent life in Homberg, far away from their grandparents.

What works in Berlin also works in Homberg

Jörg Jessen is sitting at his computer in the co-working space on the market square. The digital entrepreneur has a big grin on his face; being a pioneer makes him happy. He loves the change between urban and rural living spaces, has lived in California and Berlin for many years, but also on a farm in Upper Bavaria for six years. Most recently, the 58-year-old founded a start-up in Darmstadt that deals with the topic of digital identities.

Above all, he wants to make the city administration more digital. “Patents are often registered in big cities like Berlin because that’s where the companies are located. But the ideas often come from the country because there is more room for creativity here.”

In addition to his digital projects, Jessen also takes care of a completely analog topic. Together with the city and other pioneers, they are renovating Hesse’s oldest inn, the Krone from 1480. And Jessen has already decided to stay in the region after the “Summer of Pioneers” and to ensure lasting change.

Social and culinary meeting point

In the former pharmacy on the market square, there is a smell of fresh yeast pastries. Lisa Amling is currently preparing a serving of Buchteln with vanilla sauce. Twice a week she cooks vegetarian meals for the whole group, because the range of meat-free alternatives in Homberg is rather limited.

The former pharmacy is not only a culinary, but also a social meeting point for the pioneers. “Everyone here works a bit, doing something in front of the screen that is not really tangible, and here with Lisa’s meal, you can get in touch,” says the organizer Linker. “The people are together for six months, they have to find each other as a community, and for that, the food is a great glue to bring the group together.”

Uncertain future

It will only be decided in the coming weeks whether a kind of “Winter of Pioneers” will continue after the “Summer of Pioneers”. Left and around half of the pioneers would like the project to be extended in order to make a lasting difference in Homberg.