Is the tool shed project now overturning? | Sächsische.de

The expansion of the elementary school in Moritzburg planned with the project and the new construction of a rescue station agreed with the district would also be affected.

What happened? For the fourth time since January, the Moritzburg councilors discussed this year’s municipal budget in their meeting on Monday evening. And again it was mainly about one point: Should a new loan be taken with this, or is there a way to realize the planned construction of the fire brigade tool shed without a new debt? If one believes the observers and participants in the previous session in the second week of March, this question actually seemed to have been resolved. The majority of the councilors were apparently ready to bite the bullet of new debt so as not to bring the project to failure in the last few meters.

City council questions its own decision

First of all, as expected, a clear majority of an application submitted by the CDU parliamentary group was approved. With this, Mayor Jörg Hänisch (independent) is commissioned to renegotiate the agreement concluded with the district of Meißen in the middle of last year for the construction and acquisition of a new ambulance station in Moritzburg. The contract stipulates that the municipality will build the guard on the property it owns at the site of the demolished middle school. The district of Meißen would then acquire the land and buildings after completion. Construction costs of almost 1.5 million euros are currently expected. The aim of the CDU application is to change the agreement so that the district acquires the property immediately, the builder remains with the community, but the financing is immediately taken from the district budget so that the community is not temporarily burdened.

After the decision passed with four votes against – with this the municipal council questions its own decision, which was only made in June last year – it was Gerald Bibas (Pro Steinbach) who put another council decision up for discussion, not for the first time. This is even further back and concerns the choice of the location for the fire brigade tool shed.

So that the 3.2 million euro loan would not have to be raised for the new building, as is now planned, he spoke out in favor of a renewed examination of the location next to the parking lot on Schlossallee. The property of the former middle school, on which the equipment house and the new rooms for the elementary school will be located in addition to the ambulance station, could be sold. “It is in a prime location,” says Gerald Bibas. Mayor Jörg Hänisch contradicted this representation. “The property on Schlossallee does not belong to us, so we would have to buy it first.” In addition, building there is currently not legally possible.

And the town hall chief gave something else to consider. Any further delay jeopardizes the funds provided. “We have to build up 880,000 euros in funding by the end of the year, which will be very difficult if we perhaps have a confirmed budget by the middle of the year.” He also made it clear that fire protection is a compulsory task for the community and that the new building has been overdue for years.

André Hettmann (AfD) pointed out that it was not at all clear whether the full loan amount had to be used at all. Finally, in a closed meeting, they discussed property sales. With the massive growth in prices in the construction industry, every time there is a delay, you end up cutting yourself into your own flesh. Even more so if this also jeopardizes the funding.

Ingo Friedemann made it clear that he was decidedly in favor of the building, even if the community had to bite the bullet for it. Nico Huth from the Free Voters argued against it that 880,000 euros in subsidies were not an argument for him if the necessary own funds could not be raised without new borrowing.

Heiko Vogel (SPD) said that he does not want to return funding again, as happened in the previous year. It was about the money for the expansion of the Kurfürst-Moritz-Oberschule, which had already been advertised, but had not been awarded because of a single, overly expensive offer. In the meantime, the urgently needed extension has moved a long way off.

Peter Hebestreit (CDU) had already got to the heart of the matter at the municipal council meeting in February by saying that there is no point in removing small things in the budget. Either you want the shed or you don’t. If so, then you can’t do that without borrowing. In order to give direction to the discussion, which was turning in circles, he finally proposed a test vote on Monday evening, which Heiko Vogel also supported.

Eight to six votes against borrowing

Jörg Hänisch said after a short break that the municipal regulations do not provide for such a vote. Instead, he asked each local council individually whether they were in favor of a loan that was directly related to the construction of the fire station. Heinrich Gerhartz, Peter Hebestreit, Kerstin Missbach, Marcel Vetter (all CDU), Gerald Bibas (Pro Steinbach), André Hettmann (AfD) and Frank Schreier and Nico Huth (both free voters) spoke out against this. Heiko Vogel, Klaus Schiffner, Susann Dulig, Peter Christen (all SPD), Ingo Friedemann (AfD) and Jörg Hänisch voted for a loan. Volker John (CDU) as well as Henry Füg and Patrick Schütte (both AfD) voted with abstention.