Where business people used to meet, children now play football in the conference room. A temporary closet has been set up next door. And helpers from the Red Cross and Caritas are there to help people fleeing the war zone when they need to fill out documents or need a doctor: the Infinity Hotel in Unterschleißheim, with its 439 rooms, has taken in 150 refugees so far. There is space for up to 200 people in need. Meanwhile, hotel operations continue. In view of the pictures from the Ukraine, which showed “children sleeping on the floor,” there was no other option but to offer help, says Andreas Striebel, the owner of the hotel.
When the district office called for accommodation to be reported two weeks ago, Striebel and his family spontaneously offered rooms in the large, modern hotel where national football teams are regularly guests when international matches take place in the Fröttmaninger Arena. “We are immediately ready to start as a hotel. We don’t have to set up any beds,” says the hotelier. After a few days’ notice, the first buses with refugees from Ukraine drove up to the hotel entrance at the beginning of last week.
In the first week they tried to manage the double operation as a hotel and accommodation for stranded war refugees on their own, says Striebel. His son was on duty day and night. First of all, hygiene items were obtained for several thousand euros. The Red Cross and Caritas have been supporting the hotel staff since the weekend. The city is also showing solidarity: Unterschleißheim’s mayor Christoph Böck (SPD) was at the hotel at the weekend, and a large fundraising campaign has started locally. It’s a great pleasure to be able to help, says Striebel, but: “It’s also exhausting. The first week was an intense experience.”
The Infinity Hotel in Unterschleißheim, with its 439 rooms, wants to temporarily accommodate around 200 refugees.
(Photo: Robert Haas)
But Striebel does not regret his commitment in any way. The hotel is currently not fully occupied, the hotel business continues to run well. The refugees could definitely stay until the end of April. According to the hotelier, half of those who are now staying in the hotel are children. Families are housed together in guest rooms. According to Striebel, they all get breakfast, lunch and dinner. A network of helpers is now also active. When Mayor Böck called on Facebook at the weekend for interpreters to come forward, enough people who spoke the language were quickly found.
Michael Solbach, managing director of an IT company, started a call for donations via his online account and also took over as head of operations for the BRK service at the hotel at the weekend. There is now an on-call service from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., as well as a doctor’s consultation hour every day at 1 p.m. “For example, when a family arrives with an infant, you take a look at it,” says Solbach. Vaccinations would also be offered and the 3-G status explained or a dentist appointment arranged. The solidarity in the city is very, very large, says Sebastian Schürmann from the BRK readiness.
Right next to the hotel, SV Lohhof has also accommodated refugees in the Ballhausforum. According to city hall spokesman Steven Ahlrep, the city itself has sounded out its properties for suitable rooms. The churches and many citizens would have made living space available. The neighborhood help set up an open meeting. Further activities to admit children to schools or to offer German courses at the adult education center are being organised.
Former hotels are used in Gräfelfing and perhaps also in Ottobrunn
Other hotels in the district also take in refugees from the Ukraine. District Administrator Christoph Göbel (CSU) confirmed on Tuesday the rental of hotels in Oberhaching and Planegg, including the Dormero Hotel in Kirchheim. The former Hotel Pacific in Ottobrunn is still under discussion, and negotiations are currently underway between the owner and the district office, Ottobrunn Mayor Thomas Loderer (CSU) confirms. He would expressly welcome it if refugees from the Ukraine were accommodated in the property.
The Hotel Dolce Vita in Gräfelfing is even ready for occupancy. Around 50 Ukrainian refugees are expected to move in there on Saturday. In the past few days, employees of the municipal administration and the building yard as well as volunteers from the Catholic parish of St. Stefan have been working hard to equip the empty house. The municipality owns the hotel, which has not been in operation since the beginning of the pandemic, and had offered it to the district office for housing refugees.
Water and heating work perfectly in the hotel, fire protection is guaranteed, and furniture is also available, states Stefan Schädle from the building authority. Fences have also been erected to separate the Würm on one side of the hotel and Planegger Strasse on the other, as many children are expected. In the hotel there is a guest room with a kitchen equipped so that several families can cook. The community has provided refrigerators, a freezer, two stoves, washing machines and dryers, and employees of the building yard connected them up.
Members of the parish have been busy for days putting together the household effects: mattresses, bed linen, towels, dishes, lamps, tables, toys for the children, hygiene articles and non-perishable groceries are being procured. Maria Wieser, one of the helpers, praises the great willingness to donate. The operators of the Hotel Pschorrhof in Lochham, which has just been closed due to a new building, have generously helped with equipment, and another private contact with hoteliers has resulted in further donations. The innkeepers from Wilden Hirschen in Gräfelfing organized cutlery and crockery, and the community took care of entertaining the guests in the first few days. “It’s a pleasure to see how committed everyone is to helping,” says Wieser. At the same time, an empty terraced house that was made available privately was furnished. Two families can stay here. On Sunday, the people from Ukraine – mainly women and children are expected – will be welcomed with a service in the parish of St. Stefan.
When it comes to accommodating refugees, the district will also rely on forms that were successfully tested in 2015, when mainly refugees from Syria and North Africa arrived. Air domes are to be used again, initially two halls with a capacity of up to 300 people seeking protection. In addition, the district office has ordered container systems that are expected to be set up on the site of the former Bundeswehr Air Force Corps in Unterhaching. In this way, the capacity for accommodating those seeking protection can be increased to a total of 1000 places.