Heated debate in Lichtenberg: Asylum accommodation causes excitement!

Heated debate in Lichtenberg: Asylum accommodation causes excitement!

Landsberger Allee, 10367 Berlin, Deutschland - in Berlin-Lichtenberg it is bubbling! A planned hotel complex is to house 1200 migrants from summer, and residents are anything but enthusiastic. At an information event in the former Hotel Berlin City East, which was organized by CDU state parliamentarian Dennis Haustein, there was an explosive atmosphere. The hall was filled to the last seat and heated discussions shaped the evening. Citizens left the room angrily while speakers were repeatedly interrupted.

The concerns of the residents are great! Playgrounds and supermarkets have already been overloaded, and the question of medical care has been loudly raised. Haustein received applause for his critical assessment of the situation: "It is more than critical to accommodate even more people here." District Mayor Martin Schaefer (CDU) expressed his resentment that he was not included in the decisions. "The state of Berlin decides," says Schaefer, who also referred to the plans for four other container locations in Lichtenberg.

protests and concerns of the residents

The residents feel over. A pensioner reported that she had only found out about the accommodation through the press. Citizens are worried about the social infrastructure, especially schools that already suffer from a lack of teachers. Social City Councilor Catrin Gocksch (CDU) assured that the doctors will stay in the hotel, which could alleviate some worries. Other facilities such as schools and playgrounds are also planned for the old hotel, which was rented for ten years and 143 million euros.

But the spokesman for the State Office for Refugee Affairs, Sascha Langenbach, fights against the image of luxury accommodations. "We don't give anything to anyone. We don't do luxury apartments," he emphasizes. The king -size beds are to be replaced by aluminum beds to give migrants a better life than they had at Tegel Airport. In the meantime, concern among residents is growing that the social problems in the neighborhood are not caused by migrants, but by political decisions.