Speech at the Mayor's New Year's reception on 18 January 2024

Dear Mr Magirius
Dr Seifert,
Members of the German Bundestag, the Saxon State Parliament and the Chemnitz City Council,
Mrs Klepsch, Minister of State,
Representatives of the state government,
Dear district councillors, fellow mayors, mayors and local leaders,
Honoured guests from Germany and abroad,
Dear people of Chemnitz,

Welcome to the first New Year's Reception of the City of Chemnitz. It gives me great pleasure that you have all accepted my invitation. Together, we would like to make this reception a wonderful tradition. I am particularly pleased that so many district councillors and mayors from the region have come here to the City Hall today. This shows how well the cooperation between the region and Chemnitz works and how important it is to work well together, and not just on Capital of Culture projects.

I am also delighted to welcome so many international guests, who show what the Capital of Culture is all about: being open and international. A warm welcome - Mr Vlach from our partner city Ústí nad Labem, Mr Masur and Ms Kawalerowicz from Wroclaw, the 2016 Capital of Culture, and Ms Šavel Burkart from Slovenia.

The turn of the year is always a good opportunity to reminisce about the past months. As is often the case in life, the good and the sad were close together in 2023.

Unfortunately, we lost two honorary citizens last year, Carl Hahn and Jutta Müller. Both were dedicated and passionate ambassadors for their hometown throughout their lives, and we will miss them. Just like Egmont Elschner - our city's Mr Culture - who passed away unexpectedly for many of us.

But there was also good news to report: The children of Chemnitz were given two new schools just in time for the start of the new school year. From now on, it will no longer be the sound of workmen at the Am Hartmannplatz and Marianne Brandt secondary schools, but the sound of bells and children's voices.

After two and a half years of construction, the railway viaduct in Oberrabenstein once again offers pedestrians and cyclists an impressive view over Chemnitz.

Not forgetting the inauguration of the new child and youth emergency service centres and the opening of the Marathon Tower, the new home of the Olympic Training Centre Saxony e.V. Both projects have kept us very busy and have now been successfully completed.

After five years, the bus station has been running and rattling again since July. In many conversations and letters from the people of Chemnitz, I have realised how much this striking fountain is close to their hearts.

In September, Chemnitz city centre lit up and thousands followed the light on facades and squares at the "Light our Vision - Lichterfestival Chemnitz". An absolute recommendation! My thanks and appreciation go to the men and women behind the project who made this success possible.

And we were also delighted with the "Park Summer" cultural festival, which attracted around 23,000 visitors last year. The people of Chemnitz and our guests also made a pilgrimage to the brewery market, the wine festival and, of course, our Christmas market. These are wonderful impressions that I would like to see more of in our city centre.

We have also experienced wonderful moments in sport. As an example, I would like to mention the Crashers Chemnitz, who crowned an outstanding regional league season with the championship title. Or the NINERS, who have gone one better every year since their promotion in 2020.

And something else has changed for the better in 2023: For the first time since the end of last year, our population is back above a quarter of a million. As of December, 251,485 people were registered as having their main residence in Chemnitz.

I would like to end my review of the year with this positive news.

[Salutation],

There are years that have a lasting impact on us, that leave us pensive, that challenge us as a society in particular. Years that demand a great deal from all of us and from which we nevertheless - or precisely because of this - emerge stronger. We are living in such times.

Doubts have grown among many people during this time. Doubts about decisions, doubts about the people involved, doubts about the path we have taken. Doubts in themselves are not a bad thing - it is just questionable how these doubts are being expressed more and more often.

We are observing a worrying development in the culture of discussion and debate. On the one hand, vehement advocates of an issue present themselves as instructive, exaggeratedly moral and superior. On the other hand, the debate is becoming brutalised. Facts are ignored and dialogue only takes place - if at all - in one's own filter bubble. At worst, intimidation, threats and violence are even used as a means of exerting influence.

Unfortunately, we are witnessing an increasing radicalisation of parts of society. Before an honest dialogue takes place, the whistles are blaring, flags are waving or blockades are taking place. This jeopardises democracy and the foundations of our liberal society.

Yet it is our shared responsibility to preserve and protect this valuable asset. Our democracy cannot be taken for granted, but is based on the commitment and participation of each individual. The cohesion of our society is the supporting pillar. We must strengthen it. We must ensure that tolerance, respect and solidarity do not degenerate into empty words, but are once again practised, even and especially when people have different opinions. Especially in times of uncertainty and social upheaval, it is important to build bridges, to listen to each other, to be open to arguments and to be willing to compromise.

2024 will undoubtedly be a challenging and landmark year. Because this year will decide the future of Europe, the future of Saxony, the future of our city and its neighbourhoods. And even if I can well understand the displeasure about some political decisions - a memo does not make a viable solution! This is especially true for elections. That's why I appeal to everyone in our city:

Be aware of your responsibility. Exercise your right and go to your polling station on 9 June and 1 September or use the option of postal voting! Because only those who participate can help shape a successful future. People who question democracy, who even want to eliminate it, cannot be an alternative.

That is why I am following the joint call of the FUER Chemnitz citizens' association and the "Chemnitz for Humanity" alliance and will be attending a rally at the town hall on Wednesday at 6 pm. You too, please!?!

[Salutation],

The volunteers in Chemnitz are a civil society in the best sense of the word. They are no strangers to social cohesion and mutual support.

Volunteering is usually unspectacular and often hidden - the unseen. Volunteers don't want to make a fuss about their work. They see where their commitment is needed and lend a hand. We also want to use this evening to highlight this commitment - don't worry, it's just a little fuss. We would like to express our appreciation and thanks.

We would like to honour some of them today for the first time with the Chemnitz Ehrentaler, our award for special social commitment. The honourees are facing up to their responsibility for the people of Chemnitz and their city and are contributing to a lively community that characterises our urban society. My sincere thanks go to them.

[Salutation],

This strong commitment is also the reason why I am optimistic and impatient about 2025 - our big year as European Capital of Culture. It is the people here who make this city so special. People who get stuck in, who drive things forward, who get involved. And - when I look around me - an incredible number of these people are here today. They all fill the Capital of Culture with life.

They are the ones who exemplify civic engagement in Chemnitz, who build bridges for dialogue, who network for the good of the city, who invest and create jobs to move the city forward. They bring Chemnitz to life.

In the application phase, we were the underdog among cities such as Hanover, Dresden, Nuremberg and Magdeburg. The unseen, which is only sexy at second glance. The completely underestimated one, with the potential of a hidden champion, with doubts from others but also from ourselves. And yet we won in the end!

If I have one wish for the new year, it's that we Chemnitz residents don't always hide our light under a bushel. I hope that we as a city and, above all, as an urban society will be even more self-confident. And I am also counting on you to help us make progress here. Because you are the ones who know and can show what is possible in Chemnitz and what is possible here. And what we can do and achieve. Let's talk about it, let's tell ourselves and others. Let's see and utilise the opportunity and not just be content to list the weaknesses and problems.

[Salutation],

There are still 366 days (leap year) until the opening of the European Capital of Culture. So 2024 is a bit like the evening before the big present. Today we start the countdown. And the excitement leading up to the official opening will be huge.

In 2024, the city will be transformed into one big stage. The Hat Festival, America and France Day, the Kosmos Festival and the highly acclaimed public art project Gegenwarten will attract thousands to the city centre. With these events and many more, we will increase the anticipation for 2025.

As my colleague Michael Stötzer, Mayor of Construction, announced last week: "We are starting the new year with great vigour, the construction of the 30 intervention areas for the European Capital of Culture Chemnitz 2025 is progressing. With the support of the European Union and funding from the federal and state governments, over 60 million euros will be invested in the city's infrastructure in the coming years. This means that the Capital of Culture idea in Chemnitz will also have an impact as an urban development project far beyond 2025.

This will already become clear this year when the number of construction sites increases once again, but I would like to take this opportunity to assure you that we will do everything we can to finish on time. So please bear with us and be patient.

I am expecting an intensive year of work in 2024, during which the programme will be finalised and the Capital of Culture will become more visible. This includes participation in many trade fairs and congresses as well as visits abroad. Tomorrow morning, I will be travelling to Bad Ischl in Austria with a delegation from Chemnitz for the opening of the European Capital of Culture year 2024. Another important point that is close to my heart is the relaunch of a citizens' programme for 2025, as for our city's 875th anniversary celebrations: Chemnitz residents who have ideas, are planning projects and need support in implementing them and have not yet been given a chance should receive better help. After all, it is your Capital of Culture year.

So let it be our common goal that this great project makes our city the best Chemnitz ever.

I am looking forward to 2025, to the huge celebration in our city and to all the guests coming to Chemnitz and the cultural region. Today I wish us a wonderful evening with good conversations and lasting encounters.

(The spoken word prevails)