Consultancy and Financing Instrument
(Rhineland-Palatinate)
This project has been put into the archive. The project details will not be updated anymore.
Source: Stadt Bad Dürkheim
The Bad Dürkheim (pop. 18,800) inner city is characterised by a mix of retail, services, hotels, gastronomy and spa and health institutions. Renovation measures have been carried out in parts of the inner city since 1989. These measures have been accompanied by the "Stadtbildpflegefonds". This involves a communal programme to maintain and look after the old buildings with free advice for owners and grants for renovation measures to buildings and outside facilities.
However, it was found that the possibilities and the duration of such a fund were limited by the dependence on the municipal budget. In order to stabilise the inner city development, therefore, an instrument was sought which can be used over the long-term independently from the budget situation.
Source: Stadt Bad Dürkheim
Together with the Technische Universität Kaiserslautern, the concept of the InnenStadtEntwicklungs Fund (ISE Funds) was developed. This fund has been established as a long-term implementation instrument to initiate private investments in the form of Public-Private-Partnerships (PPP).
In view of the limited financial possibilities of the local authorities and a general investment reticence, the ISE Fund relies in private investments which are encouraged by public incentives. The ISE Fund strives to identify and intervene early and for sustainability. Apart from comprehensive consultancy services, financial support is offered in the form of grants or interest discounts. The ISE Fund links urban development aims closely with concepts of economic development.
The advice to potential investors is provided free of charge. It is restricted to a defined area of the inner city. Function and use problems, financing and support possibilities, structural, technical and design aspects are clarified, as well as legal matters. Property owners, restaurateurs, retailers and service providers are entitled to these services. In order to guarantee the effective use of funds and the sustainability of the projects, the grants are linked to prior advice.
Private capital for inner city development is used with the fund. Apart from structural measures, company and business ideas, alongside market measures, can be supported. A general plan forms the basis for defining projects and measures.
Projects within the framework of the ISE Fund are initiated by two different methods. On one hand, individual property owners or businesses take the initiative on the basis of a tangible problem situation or need for action. On the other, the development of concepts is implemented jointly by several inner city stakeholders on the basis of city objectives.
The financing and decision-making structures are arranged as a partnership between public and private stakeholders.
The central committee of the ISE Fund is a municipal committee which has been affiliated to the city's main, finance and economic development committee. This committee's task is to devise and approve the general plan and to consent to grants of more than Euro 5,000 from the ISE Fund. The private donors (Stadtwerke Bad Dürkheim GmbH and Werbegemeinschaft des Bad Dürkheimer Einzelhandels) are also represented in this committee.
The administrative tasks of the ISE Fund are performed by the Bad Dürkheim city administration as committee's office. The committee's office approves the grants from the ISE Fund according to the subsidy guidelines. For grants of less than Euro 5,000, approval is not required from the municipal committee. The committee's office is the central contact partner and is responsible for the organisation and content of the ISE Fund. It draws up the general plan and has to report to the municipal committee "InnenStadtEntwicklungs-Fonds".
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1989 | Stadtbildpflegefonds Fund (as predecessor, runs in parallel for parts of the city outside the inner city) |
| 2004/05 | Preparation, concept creation and expansion of the ISE Fund |
| 2005 | Awarded a prize in the competition "Werkstatt Innenstadt" |
| 2006 | InnenStadtEntwicklungs Fund |
| 2006 | Inclusion in the state initiative "QuartiersGemeinschaften Innenstadt" |
Source: Stadt Bad Dürkheim
Numerous public and private inner city stakeholders have been attracted to the ISE Fund and have been persuaded to cooperate. The fund model of public and private capital sources contributes to the long-term financing and economic capacity of the projects and measures for inner city development.
City marketing measures could be linked to the upgrading of the public space and buildings in the city centre. This has contributed to the enhanced attractiveness of the inner city for retail, services, gastronomy and housing. With the ISE Fund, the Bad Dürkheim city centre has been developed sustainably and its inner city functions have been secured.
The projekt site ist to be found at postal code: 67098 - town: Bad Dürkheim - street: Kaiserslauterer Straße 1.
Record inserted on 20.04.2009 by the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) within the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR).
Last update: 31.10.2011