The Salzgitter City Council has adopted a new guideline to support projects and measures. The aim is to strengthen civic engagement and the community. In addition, disadvantaged neighborhoods are to be upgraded in terms of urban development. An informal application can be submitted.

Why is there a new funding program?

In Salzgitter's 31 districts, there are many neighborhoods with socially disadvantaged groups from different backgrounds. Social disadvantages arise due to poor housing quality, a neglected living environment and inadequate infrastructure. In addition, the lack of employment and/or low income situation of the citizens living there can have a negative impact.

For these disadvantaged areas/neighbourhoods in all districts of Salzgitter, there is a new funding program with the "Guideline for the promotion of measures with increased need for action", for which interested parties can apply with a project/measure (see below).

What kind of projects or measures are funded?

Funding is available for individual measures and projects that have one of the following objectives:

• Promote coexistence and civic engagement
• Promote identification with the neighborhood
• Enhance the cityscape
• Improve the quality of stay
• Revitalize the district/neighbourhood
• Strengthen the image of the neighborhood
• Promote integration
• Promote coexistence in the neighborhood/district
• Avoid social disadvantage

In addition, the projects should be meaningful and economical.

Funding can be approved in particular for

• Measures as tangible investments such as the purchase and installation of waste garbage cans, bicycle stands, play equipment or signage.
• Measures that are not investments in tangible assets, but socially integrative measures, intercultural measures such as leisure activities, creative courses, district festivals, etc.

All citizens and/or associations/institutions can submit an informal application (with a detailed description of the measures and a cost and financing plan).

This informal application must be submitted to the Department for Urban Redevelopment and Social City (Joachim-Campe-Straße 6-8, 38226 Salzgitter, mail: stadtumbaustadt.salzgitterde.

Anyone with questions can also call 839-3386 on Mondays from 10 am to 12 noon and Thursdays from 2 pm to 4 pm. Other appointments can also be made by e-mail.

Within the framework of the annual budget funds available, the city of Salzgitter supports measures in its districts, primarily in socio-economically disadvantaged neighborhoods upon application, to prevent social hotspots and for structural improvements and urban upgrading, to ensure social cohesion and to promote social participation.

The aim of the funding is to make a contribution to strengthening civic involvement and improving the quality of life through individual measures.

The city of Salzgitter promotes measures in all parts of the city that are positive for the community.

Applications must be submitted informally to the Department for Urban Redevelopment and Social City and must include a detailed description of the measures and a cost and financing plan.

Applications will be processed in the order in which they are received until the budgeted funds have been allocated. The application is assessed for funding on the basis of social structure indicators, among other things. The decision on the type and amount of funding is made by the City of Salzgitter within the framework of the available financial resources.

Anyone with questions can also obtain information by calling 839-3386 on Mondays from 10 am to 12 noon and Thursdays from 2 pm to 4 pm. Other appointments can also be made by e-mail.

The Seeviertel in Lebenstedt and the Ost- und Westsiedlung in Salzgitter-Bad receive funding from urban development programs of the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economics and Construction.

The state of Lower Saxony is thus promoting the sustainable development and renewal of towns and communities, with the federal government providing half of the funding and the local authorities providing the other half.

Two districts in Salzgitter are receiving further support from the state with urban development funds:

The Seeviertel district in Lebenstedt with 251,000 euros from the "Growth and Sustainable Renewal" funding program and the Ost- und Westsiedlung in Salzgitter-Bad with 300,000 euros from the "Social Cohesion" program.

With these commitments, new projects can be started and existing projects continued in the Seeviertel and the Ost- und Westsiedlung.

In total, the state of Lower Saxony, together with the federal government, is providing half of the funding for the sustainable development and regeneration of cities and municipalities with around 122 million euros. Together with the additional income and the local authorities' own contribution, this results in a total investment volume of 185 million euros.

The structure of urban development funding was fundamentally overhauled in 2020. The previous "Socially Integrative City" program will be continued and developed in the new "Social Cohesion - Shaping Neighbourhoods Together" program. The objectives of the program continue to be to increase the quality of housing and life as well as the diversity of use in the neighbourhoods, to support the integration of all population groups and to strengthen cohesion in the neighbourhood.

The funds are used for investment and investment-related overall urban development measures to stabilize and upgrade urban and local districts that are significantly disadvantaged due to the composition and economic situation of the people living and working there. More information can be found on the websites of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community and the Lower Saxony Ministry for the Environment, Energy, Building and Climate Protection on urban development funding

The urban redevelopment program expired in 2019; the successor program is called "Growth and sustainable renewal - shaping liveable neighbourhoods".

Important funding objects of this new program are urban redevelopment and the reuse and interim use of industrial, transport or military wasteland, including changes of use, as well as brownfield development, in particular to support housing construction.

As an important component of all urban development measures currently being implemented in the city, the city of Salzgitter also supports modernization and repair measures within the meaning of Section 177 of the German Building Code (BauGB) on private buildings and measures to improve the residential environment by granting a subsidy within the framework of the annual urban development funds available and budgetary availability.

The aim is to achieve a decisive improvement in the urban design of the respective neighborhood in terms of the appearance of the building fabric and the residential environment and thus to increase the attractiveness and quality of the residential area. The active participation of residents in the urban renewal process also creates a sense of identity and strengthens awareness of the neighborhood. Funding for such measures is therefore in the interests of both the city of Salzgitter and its residents.

The specific funding modalities can be found in the "Guidelines of the City of Salzgitter for the funding of private modernization and repair measures on buildings and measures to improve the residential environment within the redevelopment areas of the City of Salzgitter" adopted by the City Council.

Important prerequisites for funding are that the property is located within the respective redevelopment area, the property or the building has urban development deficiencies/deficiencies, the measure has not yet been started and the financing cannot be funded or financed by own funds and/or other external funds or subsidies (grants or loans, e.g. from KfW Bank).

The promotion of modernization and repair measures is carried out within the framework of public law contracts with the owners.

The City of Salzgitter's Urban Redevelopment and Socially Integrative City Department will be happy to advise interested parties.