“District Council Approves 340 Million Euro Loan for Agenda 2030 and New Clinic Building in Achern”

The offer for the “complete credit agreement” was awarded to a consortium of three unnamed banks. According to the draft resolution, the money is to be paid out on fixed dates in the years 2023 to 2026. The fixed interest rate is expected to be around 4.19 percent with a fixed interest period of 30 years. However, there is a special right of termination after ten years. In this way, the district wants to protect itself against a possible favorable interest rate development. Ultimately, he also vouches for the huge loan to finance the new clinic building in Ortenau. The administration expects the state to contribute 60 percent to the construction costs of the 2030 Agenda.

The original financing concept from 2020 still expected around 1.5 percent interest. The fact that borrowing is now falling at a time of drastically rising interest rates caused gnashing of teeth at the district council meeting on Tuesday. “We’re a few years too late,” interjected Christian Huber, parliamentary group leader of the Free Voters. “We could have done much better there.” Ettenheim’s mayor and CDU district councilor Bruno Metz spoke of financing “at a crazy time”, Green parliamentary group leader Alfred Baum of a “race against time”.

In its draft resolution, the district administration referred to “external framework conditions”: Due to the coordination with the regional council, extensive requirements and the time-consuming coordination process with the banks in the run-up to the loan advertisement, an earlier conclusion was not possible.

“In historical comparison, it’s still cheap,” said SPD district councilor and Offenburg’s finance mayor, Hans-Peter Kopp, to consider. In addition, after ten years you have another chance to “change horses”. FDP parliamentary group leader Carsten Erhardt described the present conditions as an “acceptable offer” with regard to the special right of termination. So far, the financing of the clinic reform has been more of an abstract topic, “today we are backing it with real money”.

Hope for a new clinic building in Lahr West

He connects several hopes with the decision for the overall loan agreement, explained Metz. Among other things, “to be able to erect all new buildings in Offenburg, Achern and Lahr”. The head of the Ettenheim town hall also explicitly mentioned a new building in the west of Lahr. He also hopes that construction prices will level off again and that the state will stand by its funding promises. “And the federal government is finally launching an adequate financing system for the clinics.”

The second major decision on Agenda 2030 on Tuesday was made with two abstentions: The district council voted for the new clinic in Achern for around 158 million euros – the first in the course of Agenda 2030. “Less than five years after the agenda decisions – that must you can let it melt in your mouth,” emphasized District Administrator Frank Scherer at the meeting. “All technical, legal and political questions have been clarified.” With the decision, the district council also gave the green light for the award of work. Commissioning is planned for mid-2027 (see info).