"The future of Offenbach can only develop from the core," said Lord Mayor Horst Schneider at the start of the press conference on June 14, underlining how important the development of the city center is. The final milestone in the redevelopment of the city center was the redesign of the market square, where various interests had to be taken into account. Citizens and retailers have been able to put forward their ideas for the redesign at a total of 30 public events since 2009. There has also been intensive consultation within the new coalition. The decision by the city councillors scheduled for June was therefore postponed to August 24. "The internal consultation was good and important," explained the Lord Mayor. "A very large majority is now behind the project decision."
In concrete terms, this means that the basic decision made in June 2015 to redesign the market square in such a way that the previous separating effect for pedestrians between Wilhelmsplatz and the pedestrian zone is eliminated and the traffic area is reduced by a third remains in place. The aim is to redesign the square so that people enjoy spending more time there. The marquee bus stop will be moved to Berliner Straße near the town hall, while through traffic will continue to use the market square for the time being. Another important change, according to Schneider, is that the left-turn lane on Berliner Straße to Schloßstraße will be abandoned. This will allow a separate right-turn lane for buses to the market square at this point. In future, road users coming from the west will be able to turn into Großer Biergrund instead. In future, access to the new parking garage of the demolished Toys-R-Us building will also be from there. Accordingly, the one-way direction in Ziegelstraße will be reversed.
Mayor Schneider emphasized that the municipality is taking the concerns of the retail trade very seriously in view of the changed traffic routing and the estimated construction period of 25 months. "We are very aware that retail, gastronomy and culture are necessary for a functioning city center," said Schneider. In competition with online retail, city centers can only function as a world of experience, which is why cooperation between the municipality, retail and culture is essential. During the entire renovation phase, all stores and parking garages will remain accessible to customers. This will result in a comparatively long construction period.
Changes to the traffic routing outside the marketplace area
The Office for Urban Planning, Traffic and Construction Management will use the time until the project decision is made in August to adapt the traffic relationships outside the market square area - especially for bus traffic. "We will show in a draft plan what needs to change outside the market square," explains Markus Eichberger, head of the office. In addition to relocating the left-turn lane on Berliner Straße, bus route 101 will in future use Mainstraße and Schlossstraße to reach the bus stop on Marktplatz. New bus stops are to be built in front of the Rudolf Koch School and in Mainstraße.
"There will also be changes to the traffic routing at Wilhelmsplatz," explains Eichberger. "Coming from Berliner Strasse and Bieberer Strasse, you will be allowed to turn left into the eastern side street of the square in future. Both side streets of Wilhelmplatz will then be accessible from the south." This will give market vendors the long-desired access to Wilhelmsplatz from the east and prevent the "show driving" of pimped-up cars around the square that has been observed from time to time. The parking lot on Wilhelmsplatz will then have a new access road from the south (via Bleichstraße).
City center receives a uniform appearance
The main aim of the renovation is to improve the quality of the city center between Marktplatz, Frankfurter Straße and Wilhelmsplatz and to give it a uniform appearance. "The smooth transition between the market square and the pedestrian zone is to be achieved through uniform paving for the sidewalks and carriageway as well as wider sidewalks with low kerbs," explains Marcus Hüls, urban design specialist and project manager for the market square conversion. "The roadway will be two meters narrower and the sidewalks will be correspondingly wider. This will also provide more space for outdoor catering and product displays." There will also be uniform lighting in the inner city area, benches on the market square will invite people to linger and more trees will be planted.
Fewer cars, more cyclists - that also remains a goal: "We will open up more one-way streets to bicycle traffic," adds Mayor Schneider. After the conversion, a traffic report will clarify whether the changed traffic routing and the narrowing of the lanes will lead to less car traffic in the city center. If not, changes will then have to be considered.