"The Thuringian Alliance 'Inner Cities with a Future' is a good example of the fact that urban development and, in particular, the development of inner cities is a joint task of a broad range of stakeholders. The focus is on the exchange of information and the support of Thuringian municipalities in order to develop sustainable visions for our inner cities that serve the common good," said Infrastructure Minister Susanna Karawanskij.
"The major challenges that city centers and their local stakeholders, such as the retail, hospitality, and tourism sectors, are facing after two years of existential crisis gave the Erfurt Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) the impetus to initiate the action alliance. The short-term goal was to stabilize Thuringia's city centers in an unbureaucratic manner with tailor-made instruments. A powerful restart is important for our local businesses, for the citizens and guests of a city, and thus for the entire region," summarizes Dr. Cornelia Haase-Lerch, Chief Executive Officer of the Erfurt IHK, the goals of the local alliance.
The collaboration of the alliance can point to a series of successes. In the first year, structures and working methods were predominantly defined, suitable thematic priorities and goals were identified, and additional network partners were acquired. In this context, the regionally differing framework conditions were particularly challenging, as they make a holistic, comprehensive approach more difficult.
The individuality of each city center requires tailored solutions to address the challenges of structural change on the ground. In addition, overarching ideas that can work in many places are needed. Due to the thematic diversity, the alliance divided itself into three working groups (WG) focusing on "vacancy management", "climate", and "living and life in the city". In addition to consolidating the results from these WGs, members also dealt with the strategic positioning of the action alliance during the network meetings. Furthermore, it is planned to establish its own office.
Results in the annual review
Vacancy changes the overall urban image, causing town centers to lose their appeal. The "Working Group on Vacancy Management" therefore aims to contribute to the development of measures that promote a successful approach to vacancy, for example through a guide with model solutions for municipal stakeholders. Another goal is to raise awareness of new experimental usage concepts and potential opportunities arising from vacancy. In addition, a practical definition of vacancy with the possibility of differentiation is intended to provide greater clarity.
In order to enhance the quality of stay in Thuringia's city centers as well as their resilience to the impacts of climate change, measures are needed that consider climate protection and climate adaptation in an integrated manner. To this end, the "Climate" working group has identified a wide range of measures: expanding green and blue infrastructure, sharpening and interlinking existing funding instruments, initiating pilot projects, or incorporating regional value creation.
The working group "Living and Life in the City" develops future ideas for urban coexistence. In addition to evaluating funding instruments, it promotes networking among stakeholders as well as the exchange of experience and information. The working group has compiled a catalog of potential measures and their funding options. Currently, several Thuringian ministries have been asked to review and supplement these.
The three working groups cannot be viewed in strict isolation from one another in terms of content; rather, the aim is to actively create synergies and to consider the tasks of the working groups together. Further information on the work of the action alliance is available on the Website published.
Background:
The challenges that structural change poses to the future development of our city centers are enormous: demographic change, altered consumer behavior, and digitalization. The COVID-19 pandemic has further intensified this effect. New strategies and individual solutions for municipalities are needed to avoid loss of function, to preserve the vitality of our city centers in the long term, and to secure their quality of stay.
At the political level, the topic of inner-city development was already addressed at the Building Ministers' Conference (BMK) and the "Innenstadt Advisory Board" at the federal level last year. The BMK report "Perspectives for the Development of Inner Cities" is available with its corresponding recommendations for action.
To meet the requirements at the state level in all Thuringian cities and municipalities, the Thuringian alliance “Innenstädte mit Zukunft“ was founded on June 8, 2021. The alliance was formed under the leadership of the Thuringian Ministry of Infrastructure and Agriculture and by the Thuringian Chambers of Industry and Commerce, and it consists of a variety of different associations and initiatives connected with inner-city development.
