New construction of the Weiche outdoor pool: Flensburg's heated council decision!

New construction of the Weiche outdoor pool: Flensburg's heated council decision!

Things have come to a point in Flensburg that the city administration is taking a step towards the future. On June 26, 2025, the council voted for the new construction of the Weiche outdoor swimming pool, a project that has been discussed for a long time. The voting result was extremely close with 22 yes votes to 16 no votes. The decision has caused a lot of excitement in recent weeks, not least because of the heated debates that preceded the decision.

But what is behind this hotly debated new building? On the one hand, the Weiche location is very important for the citizens, and the associated financial aspects required a thorough discussion. City treasurer Henning Brüggemann emphasized the urgency of a decision, while SPD parliamentary group leader Justus Klebe argued that due to the tight budget, priorities such as school renovations had to be set. According to Klebe, the estimated annual operating costs of around 800,000 euros cannot simply be ignored, especially when the financing of other leisure facilities involves smaller subsidies.

Keep an eye on finances

The discussion about costs is one of the central questions. The entire project amounts to 7.3 million euros, half of which is financed by the federal government. The Finance Committee has already discussed the proposal to adopt variant c of the resolution proposed by the SSW and the Greens with an investment volume of around 7.2 million euros. However, the long-term costs, which are 368,000 euros annually with an active sponsoring association or even 813,000 euros with purely municipal management, should be examined in detail.

The reaction of the political groups was different. While the SSW and the Greens campaigned for the new building, the CDU and SPD emphasized the need to invest in an ailing education sector. Thomas Dethleffsen from the CDU pointed out that children and students in particular would benefit from the new building. The discussion about a possible expansion of the campus pool as an alternative solution is also interesting. There are different views among the groups here.

A look into the future

What do these developments mean for the community as a whole? According to a special survey by the German Institute for Urban Studies, municipalities are looking for ways to maintain sports facilities such as outdoor swimming pools. After all, 94% of municipalities reported having sports halls and 54% reported an increase in outdoor pools since 2014. Nevertheless, 59% of municipalities reported a significant investment backlog - a circumstance that could jeopardize the availability and quality of such facilities.

The next four weeks will be crucial as further measures need to be discussed. The new construction of the Weiche outdoor swimming pool could not only significantly improve leisure opportunities for citizens, but also serve as an incentive for other municipal projects. It remains to be seen whether the project will finally get rolling, but the signs point to change.

For anyone looking for more information, here are the articles from NDR, SHZ and Difu to find.