Resistance to asylum seekers' home: Worries about Seeshaupt's future!

Resistance to asylum seekers' home: Worries about Seeshaupt's future!

In a tense meeting of the Seeshaupt local council, a planned project caused a lot of discussion. Helmut Hartl and Bernhard Pössinger from the district office's “Asylum Services and Integration” department presented their plans for a new accommodation for asylum seekers on Sankt-Heinricher-Straße. The accommodation is to be built on an attractive property not far from Lake Starnberg, which has a high value. However, the community is anything but enthusiastic about these plans.

Around 50 interested people came to this meeting, which underlines the importance of the topic. “Enthusiasm looks different,” commented Maximilian Amon, a local council member. The plans envisage mixed accommodation where up to 99 asylum seekers, including families with children, will live. Hartl noted that this is intended to be a decentralized approach to minimize impact on the community. Nevertheless, the speakers' insights left many questions.

Plans for the construction project

Before construction can begin, extensive renovation work needs to be done as the property was a former landfill. The initial work is estimated to cost around 1.7 million euros, with the money coming from the Free State of Bavaria. The planned accommodation consists of several buildings that are to be built using ecological solid wood construction. A photovoltaic system and heat pump technology are also planned to minimize the ecological footprint. At the same time, the municipality could create apartments for a total of 53 additional people, which would be rented out in the usual manner. According to Pössinger, the new buildings could also be used for other purposes once the asylum seekers no longer live there.

The district office representatives emphasize that the community should be involved in the design and construction, but make it clear that this decision was made over their heads. If Seeshaupt does not run the accommodation, the government of Upper Bavaria may take responsibility, possibly with simulation games for an even larger shared accommodation.

Concerns from local council members

Council members express serious concerns. Dorothee von Jungsfeld (CSU) pointed out that it is a “jumbo project” that could have a significant impact on the community’s infrastructure, especially with regard to schools and kindergartens. Maximilian Amon (PFB) even fears that not only 99 asylum seekers, but possibly up to 152 places could be filled. This is causing concern among council members.

Armin Mell (FDP) criticized the location of the property, which in his opinion was too valuable to be used for the planned accommodation. The high costs and long-term commitment of accommodating refugees were also discussed. Reinhard Weber (SPD) expressed the fear that the occupancy of the accommodation could last for decades and wondered who should also move into the remaining apartments.

Mayor Fritz Egold confirmed that a building application has not yet been submitted, so council members cannot yet vote on the plans. This hinders the possibility of taking a clear position. However, the municipality is already in contact with lawyers to consider all options, while citizens will have the opportunity to ask questions and raise concerns at an upcoming town hall meeting on October 24th.

The situation remains tense while the municipality and district administration try to find a solution that meets both the requirements of the Free State and the needs of the community. The full spectrum of reactions to the new construction plans will continue to unfold in the coming weeks, and residents are eagerly awaiting further information.

For more details on this topic, the article can be found on www.merkur.de be read.