"This is an unprecedented event of particular significance in Salzgitter," says Lord Mayor Frank Klingebiel.

The funding comes from the so-called "€50 million Salzgitter aid", which the state of Lower Saxony made available at the end of 2019 for special structural aid measures in the city on the initiative of Mayor Frank Klingebiel in view of Salzgitter's multiple problems.

The city of Salzgitter has been working on the urban development upgrading of the east and west housing estates in Salzgitter Bad as part of the urban development program since 2004. One challenge in this neighborhood is the particularly high vacancy rate of apartments in very poor structural condition. With the extra funding that has now been made available and thus the opportunity to purchase apartments along Engeroder Strasse and Rheinstrasse, a further significant step can now be taken towards upgrading the neighborhood.

The next step will be the sustainable refurbishment of these apartments. The aim is to upgrade the neighborhood and make it more attractive, to make the apartments more contemporary and to meet different tenant requirements for young and old by changing the layout. Both existing residents and new user groups will benefit from this. The focus is on a social mix and the development of functioning neighborhoods in the east and west estates.

The funding was approved by the Office for Regional Development in Braunschweig. State Commissioner Dr. Witt commented: "I am delighted that the state funding is a first step towards ending the backlog of renovation work on the residential buildings and making the residential area more attractive and revitalizing it. I am sure that this will have a positive effect on the neighborhood community."

Lord Mayor Frank Klingebiel recalls the odyssey he had to endure from 2017 to 2019 in the Lower Saxony state government and the Lower Saxony state parliament before his request for tangible financial assistance to tackle the multiple problems facing his city was granted and the state of Lower Saxony budgeted a separate "Salzgitter aid of €50 million" in the state budget at the end of 2019.

Klingebiel is pleased to say: "We are now reaping the rewards of my hard work. In addition to the funding of the Wasserstoffcampus and its projects in December last year in the amount of €4.7 million from Pillar 3 of Salzgitterhilfe, Pillar 2 of this state aid is now starting - in addition to the urban development funding that has been running for 17 years - the special urban development upgrading and attractiveness of the Ostsiedlung in Salzgitter-Bad through the acquisition and refurbishment of largely vacant contiguous residential units in this hotspot district by the city of Salzgitter. Together with our Wohnbau Salzgitter GmbH, we will act as owner and landlord in this estate and thus as an active environment designer alongside and with the private owner companies operating there. This launch means a great deal to me emotionally and is far more than just a lighthouse project. We are embarking on a new dimension in the urban development of hotspot districts in our city, which have a long history of "suffering" behind them. My very special and heartfelt thanks go to our Minister President Stephan Weil, our Deputy Minister President Dr. Bernd Althusmann and the CDU parliamentary group chairman Dirk Toepffer, who have been particularly committed to this €50 million Salzgitter aid."

Klingebiel confirmed: "The intended change of ownership will not change anything for the tenants for the time being. The "Acquisition and upgrading of apartments" project is designed for the long term. The concept will be finalized in the course of this year. The refurbishment measures, the total costs of which are estimated by the city at around € 30 to 34 million, are scheduled to begin in mid/end 2022 and are expected to be completed by 2030. The tenants don't need to worry at all."

The city of Salzgitter is receiving a total of €50 million in structural aid from the state of Lower Saxony. The background to this is the particular structural challenges that the city has been facing for several years. In addition to urban development problems, these include the need to integrate a large number of newcomers with a migration background and the impending structural change of the large local industrial companies. In a strategy paper, the city has therefore developed a pillar model for using these resources. In addition to the urban development upgrading of neighborhoods with high vacancy rates, these include the expansion of childcare and school facilities as well as the promotion of innovative and forward-looking development of the local economy. The Wasserstoffcampus Salzgitter is currently being built as part of the latter third pillar.

And so it goes on (expected schedule):

• The City of Salzgitter and the company owning the apartments will finally negotiate the details of the sale in April 2021
• Salzgitter City Council will decide on the project in June 2021
• 3rd quarter 2021 Conclusion of the purchase agreement
• 4th quarter of 2021 City of Salzgitter/Wohnbau Salzgitter GmbH takes over the management of the apartments