Resolution on the expansion of the B51
Together with the Greens, SPD and CDU, Volt supports a resolution calling for the expansion plans for the B51 to be revised. The aim is an efficient transport artery that at the same time reduces land consumption, protects nature and agriculture and strengthens the transition to sustainable mobility. “We need planning that reflects today's realities – with strong interplay between roads, rail, buses and cycling,” says group spokesperson Maren Berkenheide.
The joint statement by the coalition and the CDU can be found here:
https://volt-muenster.de/blog/koalition-und-cdu-fordern-bund-und-land-auf-b51-planung-zu-%C3%BCberarbeiten/
Retail and centres concept: future local shopping provision needs new planning foundations
(Council paper)
With the new retail and centres concept, the City of Münster is creating an important basis for securing local shopping provision in the long term. The concept sets out where supermarkets, chemists and other shops and services for everyday needs should develop, so that distances stay short and district centres remain lively.
“Good local shopping provision is an essential building block of liveable neighbourhoods. That is why we welcome the fact that the city is identifying gaps in provision and taking new residential areas into account at an early stage,” notes Helene Goldbeck, the Volt group's planning spokesperson.
In Volt's view, however, the concept should be conceived even more broadly in future. The analysis focuses primarily on bricks-and-mortar retail locations. Yet actual shopping behaviour is changing rapidly: online grocery shopping, delivery services and hybrid forms of shopping are now part of everyday life for many people.
“Today, local shopping provision is no longer just a question of locations; it is a supply system,” says Goldbeck. “If we are planning the city of tomorrow, we also need to understand how people actually meet their everyday needs.”
Volt therefore suggests broadening the data basis for future updates. In addition to retail floor space, digital and delivery-based forms of provision should also be recorded systematically. Bricks-and-mortar retail remains indispensable – for lively neighbourhoods as well as for short distances. However, good urban planning should take the whole reality of provision into account so that well-tailored decisions can continue to be made in the future.
The Volt group on the 2025 Münster Survey: “Stark, Münster!”
(Council paper)
The Münster Survey (Münsterumfrage) is the city's most important regular survey of residents. It shows how people perceive their quality of life, their city and current municipal challenges. That is precisely why it is more than a snapshot; it provides important pointers for the city's future development.
The results paint a positive picture: Münster is seen as liveable, cosmopolitan and stable. At the same time, the survey clearly shows where residents see potential for development.
The gap in the attribute “progressive” is particularly striking. “People want a city that brings together modern administration, innovative urban development and swift procedures more effectively. We do not see this as criticism, but as a clear mandate for the future,” says Helene Goldbeck, the Volt group's planning spokesperson.
The survey also provides concrete pointers on climate adaptation. Drinking water provision, shade and cool places to spend time are rated comparatively critically. In our view, this confirms the course the administration has taken of consistently expanding measures from the heat action plan.
At the same time, the Münster Survey shows that its own questions should also evolve. Future-oriented topics such as mobility, digitalisation and people's experiences of municipal services increasingly shape everyday life and should therefore become a systematic part of the survey in future.
Deutschlandticket in Münster: permanently secured instead of renewal every six months
The council has secured the Deutschlandticket for Münster permanently (see the council paper). Instead of being renewed every six months as before, the ticket now applies without an expiry date.
On this, Sven Konopka, Volt councillor, says:
“A good ticket should not be up for review every six months; it should be reliably in everyone's pocket. That is exactly what we are doing today: we are removing the expiry date from the Deutschlandticket in Münster. But in all honesty, the federal government no longer fully reimburses cities for the costs and now only pays a capped lump sum. An affordable ticket must not come at the expense of the services on offer. It is now up to the federal and state governments to fund it reliably.”
Security measures at schools
The council has decided to continue video surveillance at selected municipal schools, as proposed by the administration. At the coalition's initiative, the proposal was amended: instead of fencing off schoolyards across the board, the administration has been instructed to revise the bylaws governing their use and to open the schoolyards up more to the public. Volt voted in favour of the amended proposal.
On this, Sven Konopka, Volt councillor, says:
“A schoolyard that is used is safer than one that is empty and locked. That is why, for us, fences are the exception, not the rule. When it comes to video surveillance, we weigh up data protection, freedom and effectiveness, and here the report is clear: vandalism at the existing sites has fallen to almost zero, the storage period is clearly regulated and the committees remain involved. At Bremer Platz, we are also relying on a joint approach with drug and homelessness support services, rather than simply shifting problems elsewhere.”
