LSAP is committed to:
Priority 1: Environment and just transition
Priority 2: An active and dynamic municipality in culture and sport
Priority 3: Strong social measures and the reinforcement of social cohesion
Dear fellow citizens,
On 11 June, you will be called upon to elect a new municipal council that will preside over the destiny of our community for the next six years. As a partner in the majority, we have shown that you can trust the LSAP.
Our municipality is much better equipped to face the challenges of the 21st century and above all, despite the difficulties that accompanied the Covid-19 pandemic, we have largely fulfilled the electoral promises we made to you in 2017.
We have taken responsibility for the housing crisis in our country, which particularly disadvantages young adults and the most vulnerable households. Over the past six years, we have taken all the decisions to implement more than 100 affordable housing units in our municipality.
The school community has received significant support from our municipality to improve the quality of the services and infrastructure of the school campus (new kitchen, construction of a “Maison Relais”). This has had a positive influence on the educational content, as demonstrated by the changes in the school development plan and the reinforcement of educational support for children in difficulty.
The climate crisis is having a lasting impact on our society. We believe it is essential to invest in sustainable infrastructure and renewable energy. The installation of photovoltaic panels now allows us to produce 1.2 million KWh per year, which is the electrical energy needs of 25% of the commune’s inhabitants. We want to contribute to the development of a sustainable society and preserve our environment for future generations and ourselves.
Finally, the municipality is above all at the service of its inhabitants. We want to manage the municipality for you and with you. Various community projects have been developed, such as the community gardens, the 50+ space and the youth center in the Iewescht Bowéngs building in Roodt-sur-Syre, the Café de l’Amérique project and the development of the Al Millen site in Olingen, the transformation of the Old Barn in Betzdorf, the citizens’ meeting place in Berg and the development of the Fieweschplatz in Mensdorf; the Betzfield Open Air concerts and the efforts to vary the cultural offer. New sports infrastructures, in particular for the Tennis Club and the FC Syra have also been built. Finally, to conclude this brief overview, we would like to emphasize the results achieved in improving the “living together” and we would like to warmly thank all the inhabitants, clubs and associations who are involved in making our municipality what it has become: a municipality where it is good to live!
We are presenting ourselves to you as the head candidates of the LSAP list, with the ambition to continue the work we have started and to participate in the majority within the College of Aldermen.
We are fully aware of our future responsibilities. For the challenges that our municipality, like the other municipalities in the country, will have to face are considerable. It is important that the decisions that have been taken, with a view to providing a better quality of life for all the inhabitants of the municipality, can be pursued. Indeed, we need to anticipate the needs and expectations of the population and adapt the infrastructures and the missions of the municipality accordingly. As we know that the time between the decision and the implementation of the work is often long, politics shall not only be in reaction to citizens requests.
During this legislature, we intend to invest particularly in the just transition to respond to the impacts of climate change, which is our top priority. We know that the next decade will see profound changes in energy, water, biodiversity, mobility, consumption and many other factors linked to our way of life. We are making strong commitments to mitigate these shocks (e.g. energy costs, electric mobility, housing insulation, etc.) and to accompany and support all inhabitants in these transformations. We will continue and amplify the efforts and initiatives that have been put in place to regularly and systematically increase the production of renewable energy and to adapt the municipal infrastructure. To accompany all these adaptations, we will be creative and activate all the possibilities available to the municipality to offer all categories of the population the same opportunities to access the necessary means and actions.
Our second point of attention is the efforts we will continue to make to offer you an active municipality in culture and sports. There is always a lot to do in this area for the different generations and the various socio-cultural categories. The municipality will maintain and develop services, actions and social, cultural and sports activities that correspond to your expectations so that everyone can stay active. We will strongly support the clubs and associations of Betzdorf and will be particularly open to the development of new initiatives.
The third axis of our program aims to review and implement strong social measures and to reinforce the living together. The multiple crises we are experiencing are having a severe impact on the least advantaged families. We intend to review and deepen the support and subsidies that the municipality can provide to all of its inhabitants, while taking into account social selectivity and broadening the social criteria for beneficiaries, in order to offer aid to a greater number of people. Furthermore, we are fortunate to live in harmony in our country with people from all over the world. In our municipality alone, more than 60 different nationalities live together, meet, discuss and respect each other. This multicultural heritage must be proactively strengthened and supported. To this end, commit to develop communication and integration.
For us, solidarity and #ZESUMMEN are not meaningless slogans. They are essential values that we will combine in an intergenerational, intercultural and socially barrier-free way.
In order to meet the challenges facing our municipality, we have gathered around us a team rich in diverse skills, particularly motivated and committed, which is ready to mobilize for and with the inhabitants; for a lively and dynamic municipality that allows everyone to STRENGTHEN IN A GOOD ENVIRONMENT!
Frank Bourgnon & Marie-Claire Ruppert
Focus on the results of the 2017-2023 legislature
By Jean-François Wirtz, Mayor
Dear fellow citizens
In 2017, I took part in the municipal elections with a dynamic team with the aim of moving our municipality forward, accelerating its development and providing concrete solutions to the essential challenges of housing, schools and childcare. With an increase of almost 10% of the votes and 2 additional seats, I received, together with my colleagues Reinhold “Holdy” Dahlem and Frank Bourgnon, a clear mandate from the voters to take up my responsibilities in the College of Aldermen and the Municipal Council.
Over the past six years we have done a lot of work, and now it is time to take stock.
Building affordable housing
First, I would like to come back to our actions in the field of housing. As socialists, we felt it was our duty to ensure, at our level, that as much affordable housing as possible was created and that the stock of municipally owned housing was constantly and gradually increased.
Since 2017, the municipality of Betzdorf has invested more than 45 million euros in this area and has succeeded in expanding the range of housing in all the localities of the municipality:
– In Berg, a car-free district with 25 new homes is being built;
– In Betzdorf, the municipality is implementing a project for intergenerational housing with 31 flats;
– In Mensdorf, 30 new homes are being built on various plots of land owned by the municipality;
– In Olingen, 7 houses are under construction or planned;
– In Roodt-sur-Syre, thanks to the good cooperation with SNHBM, 30 houses have been built and more are already planned for the future!
It was important to us not only to create housing “accessible to all”, but also to pay special attention to the quality of these homes. We have integrated high ecological and energy criteria; we have also taken care to include a good mix of housing that meets the needs of young people or that is adapted for the elderly. We are very proud of the intergenerational project in Betzdorf – which we announced in our 2017 election program. These innovative projects are very important to us.
School and childcare
Another priority of our 2017 election program was school and childcare. Therefore, already in 2018, the College of Aldermen quickly commissioned a survey from the LISER Institute to understand what was working well and where there was still potential for improvement. With the results of this survey, the College of Aldermen developed a strategy on how our school infrastructure should be developed for the well-being of our children. In particular, we have focused on the quality of the reception of children in the canteen. In addition, the construction of a new kindergarten started in 2022 as a pilot project for sustainable construction. All these efforts have been developed with the aim of guaranteeing, now and in the future, a quality place and environment for every child in our municipality.
Living together
Like many other communities, Betzdorf is experiencing a rapid increase in population. More than 4000 people now live in our municipality. It is up to the College of Aldermen and the Municipal Council to ensure that this development is accompanied and controlled. We have taken care to maintain a high quality of life and to ensure that all the services offered by the municipality, as well as the cultural, sporting and social facilities, are in line with the needs of our citizens.
Within the College of Aldermen, we have paid particular attention to creating new community spaces in our villages so that the inhabitants of our municipality can meet and get involved. These projects have always been developed in close cooperation with the residents and our associations.
For example, new playgrounds have been created in Berg and Olingen; the Fieweschplaz in Mensdorf has been completely rebuilt; a new cultural centre with a village café is being completed in the “old barn” in Betzdorf; and a new meeting room for residents is available in Berg. Finally, a large community garden has been created in Roodt-sur-Syre.
In the “Ieweschte Bowéngs” new quality facilities are now available for our young people and for our senior club.
The range of sports facilities has been expanded with a new indoor tennis hall, and we have modernised the “Op Biirk” football stadium.
The municipality has supported the establishment of new shops, so that our citizens have a better commercial offer within our municipality.
Communal development, environment and mobility
In order to plan, guide and accompany the further harmonious development of our municipality, a new General Development Plan (GDP) was adopted by the Municipal Council in 2019. The municipality of Betzdorf has joined the Housing Pact 2.0, which ensures that our municipality will continue to play an active role in the creation of affordable housing in the future.
In order to anticipate the future increase in demand for water, we have made efforts to expand the drinking water and sewage infrastructure, with new drinking water tanks, connection to the SEBES pipeline, and the systematic implementation of a system for separating wastewater and rainwater.
In 2021, our firefighters were finally able to inaugurate their new fire and rescue centre, enabling them to ensure the safety of our citizens.
Naturally, municipal development must go hand in hand with a sustainable policy. That is why our municipality signed up to the Climate Pact and the Nature Pact during the last legislative period. Many of the objectives of these two plans have already been achieved.
Our municipality has also acquired more than 7 hectares of land for projects to protect nature and ecosystems.
In the area of mobility, we have worked to develop the network of bicycle paths in our municipality and beyond, and we have facilitated the improvement of public transport with new bus lines.
We have adapted and extended the infrastructure in all our localities to make them safer and quieter, and we have limited the speed in our villages.
Finally, our municipality has constantly invested in the installation of photovoltaic panels in order to guarantee local production of renewable energy, which produces almost a quarter of the electricity consumed by the inhabitants.
Dear fellow citizens,
As you can see, the current coalition with our 3 LSAP members has not been idle and we have implemented many projects over the past six years. This is despite a pandemic that did not slow down our momentum. During this time, we have been actively involved in managing this crisis at the local level, and we have ensured that essential community services continued to function.
For personal reasons, I have decided not to stand for re-election. However, I can assure you that the 11 candidates on the LSAP list around our heads of list Frank Bourgnon and Marie-Claire Ruppert are highly motivated and are committed to continuing the work in the same spirit and with the same energy.
Therefore, on 11 June, I would be grateful if you would place your trust in them.
Vote list 1, vote LSAP!
Jean-François Wirtz
Mayor
Priority 1:
Environment and Just Transition
Climate change is THE challenge we all face – now and in the future. We are obliged to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions very substantially over the next three decades, in order to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Luxembourg has committed itself, together with its European partners, to achieving the objective of -55% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030… that means: tomorrow! We have already largely committed our municipality to this transition and we will redouble our efforts.
Together with our coalition partner, we have succeeded in defining and implementing a Climate Pact and a Nature Pact for Betzdorf, of which we have achieved more than half of the objectives; installed photovoltaic panels which produce 1.2 million KWH/year; implemented energy-saving measures (LED street lighting); invested in electric mobility (school bus, municipal vehicles); adapted water infrastructure; purchased 7.5 ha of land to ensure biodiversity; provided associations with ecological material for the organisation of events.
Our proposals :
Just Transition
• Review and adapt the subsidy policy that helps citizens in the transition and implement new support measures for inhabitants. This policy will integrate a large part of social selectivity by setting up a progressive evolution of subsidies on the basis of household income
ü Examples: electric vehicle charging stations, household appliances (fridge, washing machine, etc.), bicycle and e-bike, installation of photovoltaic panels and other installations for the production and/or consumption of renewable energy, heat pump, eco-renovation, etc.
• Develop the production of renewable energy with the objective of covering 100% of the electricity needs of the inhabitants in the long term.
ü Develop the commune’s energy autonomy to be less dependent on energy price fluctuations;
ü Carry out a feasibility study to assess the possibilities for the municipality to become a producer & distributor of renewable energy. This study will evaluate realistic ways to develop energy storage strategies (green hydrogen, industrial batteries, etc.);
ü Measures to encourage the reduction of energy consumption (limiting public lighting, equipment to measure energy consumption, etc.)
Waste management
• Implement a municipal policy to encourage the use of the circular economy by supporting new projects that operate on the principle: Reuse-Repair-Recycle
ü For example, by encouraging a social and solidarity economy structure that would offer collective services;
ü Provision of a library of tools and machines for the inhabitants;
ü Sharing and/or exchange of objects, such as medical equipment (wheelchairs, crutches, …) or therapy equipment (exercise bikes, treadmills, …) or various specific and/or thematic materials (garden tools, …);
ü second hand and repair (Repair Café);
• Improved waste management, in particular through a review of current household waste collection policies and measures:
ü Develop recycling;
ü Collection of bulky items on request;
ü Access to sorting facilities (in collaboration with SIGRE); …
• Implement anti-waste food actions (awareness campaign, food sharing measures, …) ;
Mobility
• Promoting responsible mobility
ü (Re)implement an individual transport service – a revised version of the Betzbus and Nightlifebus;
ü Ensure safety for pedestrians at critical points (widen or create pavements) and cycle lanes (create new cycle lanes e.g. between Banzelt and Olingen);
ü Negotiate a train stop in Olingen with CFL and the Ministry of Transport;
ü Slow down the speed in the villages and extend the 30 km/h limit to the residential areas of the Commune;
ü Evaluate the possibility of cycling to and from school with an accompanying person;
ü Find solutions to recurring parking problems (station, school, housing estates, etc.);
ü Create meeting zones (Plaatz am Duerf) in certain localities;
Resilience
• Plan strategies for a resilient community
ü Produce an information brochure for residents on what to do in the event of natural disasters and major incidents (flooding, drought, power cuts, water cuts, etc.);
ü Organise exercises with the inhabitants on a voluntary basis;
ü Develop a crisis management plan (crisis unit, training, monitoring and training, backup, etc.) and a business continuity plan in the event of a crisis;
ü Information on defibrillators (location, operation, etc.) and development of first aid courses;
ü Creation of a Safety & Resilience advisory committee;
• Develop preventive strategies against incivilities;
Priority 2:
An active and dynamic commune in culture and sports
We are fortunate to live in a lively commune, which, thanks to its clubs and associations, offers a diverse range of activities and events throughout the year and for all publics. It is now a question of building on this base and of seeking out and proposing other cultural and sporting offers. It is essential that new cultural and sporting opportunities continue to be developed and promoted.
We will review and strengthen our policy of support for clubs and associations, support the development of new initiatives and activities and continue the efforts begun in the previous legislature to strengthen Betzdorf’s tourist offer and attractiveness!
During the previous legislature, we developed a real dynamic to promote the tourist appeal of our municipality (for example with the project of the Café de l’Amérique in Olingen) and the improvement of infrastructure for clubs (new tennis hall, improvement of the football field, new premises, …), the LSAP is part of the continuity of this program.
Our proposals :
Communication
• Strengthen the commune’s communication service by creating a multifunctional communal communication service that would provide
ü Information on the services and possibilities offered to the inhabitants;
ü Strengthening the interactive and participatory aspects;
ü Support for associations and clubs (citizens’ meetings, forums, etc.);
ü Events;
ü Digital communication;
A living community
• Review and adapt the policy of support and subsidies to clubs and associations in the municipality, in particular to :
ü Meet their needs and expectations as best as possible and enable their development;
ü Provide equipment;
ü Support for communication and information;
ü Guarantee that events are held under the “Green events” label;
• Create a post of Association Coordinator, in line with the new “Association Hub” project developed with the municipalities of Junglinster and Niederanven;
• Enable the creation of new sports and leisure activities:
ü Create an indoor and outdoor climbing course;
ü Complete the offer of the Al Milen site in Olingen with, for example, fitness equipment and a barbecue area;
ü Expand the range of sports facilities, e.g. a paddleball court or a petanque court;
• Establish one or more “doggy parks” especially for dogs and their owners.
Culture and tourism
• Create an original tourist accommodation offer (e.g. tourist chalets);
• Launch the concept of “Betzdorf in bloom“, which will include a competition for citizens;
• Create a festival specific to the municipality of Betzdorf, for example the Translation Festival, which would bring together existing works (theatre, film, etc.) translated and produced for the first time in “Lëtzebuergesch”, an exchange between translated authors and translators of literary works, etc.
• Develop a temporary “Artistic Creation Space” within the municipality, inspired by the “container villages” as they exist abroad;
Priority 3:
Strong social measures and the strengthening of ‘living together’
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, the social situation in Luxembourg has begun to deteriorate. This worrying situation has become even more acute in the context of high inflation and fluctuating but still high energy prices. The consequences of the war in Ukraine, the housing crisis and the climate crisis all add up, overlap and interact to create unfavorable circumstances. Unfortunately, it is becoming more difficult for low-income households to live decently in Luxembourg. Our commune is not spared from this reality. This is why the Socialists are going to commit to a perspective that will include social measures and the fight against discrimination in all our municipal policy.
Strong social measures
Subsidies and aid to households
• Implement a review of all the support and subsidies that the municipality can provide to its residents from the point of view of social selectivity. The amount granted will be inversely proportional to household income. The lower the household income, the higher the support;
• Develop new communal mechanisms to help the least favored households and those most affected by the socio-economic situation;
• Create a “Helpdesk”: this coordination office will be available to people and their families to answer questions and support them in their efforts. This service will be implemented with the neighboring municipalities;
ü The “Helpdesk” will make it possible to guide municipal procedures and to develop new municipal services to provide specific assistance to people;
Children, Youth and Families
• Substantially improve communication both to parents and to children at the primary school and the “Maison Relais” – this program will be a priority for the new communal communication platform;
• Set up a communal transport and/or carpooling service to enable children to travel safely to their extracurricular activities (music school, sports, swimming lessons, etc.);
• Review, together with those in charge, the concept of the Youth Centre and the Youth Clubs of the municipality in order to create synergies, strengthen their communication and their activities so that these places become more open and welcoming to all young people;
• It will be up to them to develop new activities with the Youth Commission:
ü Encourage exchanges between young people to counterbalance the perverse effects of digitalization: harassment on social networks, digital addiction, … ;
ü Implement, with the support of the Commune and local businesses, a “summer work placement exchange”;
ü Set up specific artistic activities (music, video, graffiti & street art, etc.) for young people (use of the temporary artistic creation space);
ü Reinforcement of existing activities and setting up of new activities for tutoring at all levels (from primary school to university);
ü Creation of a Children’s Council;
Health
• The municipality will implement a plan for the prevention of drug addiction;
• Create a “Well-Being Centre” which will host conferences, organise consultations and have staff specialised in different areas, enabling the inhabitants of the municipality to participate in the following activities:
ü physical activities (yoga, Pilate, walking, dancing, …);
ü emotional management (psychological support, sophrology, skill enhancement, meditation, creative workshops, etc.);
ü physical well-being (beauty care, self-esteem, massage, etc.);
ü nutrition courses (information sessions, dietetics, culinary workshop, …);
ü mental health (stress regulation workshop, Mindfulness, mindfulness program for children and adolescents, …)
• Building an “open” retirement home in the municipality that will offer services for residents, but also for the elderly living in the municipality:
ü Priority given to residents of the commune;
ü Personalized flats that recreate a familiar environment for the residents;
ü Actively involve residents in household activities (cleaning, laundry, cooking, gardening, etc.) to keep people independent and active;
ü Various workshops specifically adapted to the elderly (crafts, reading, making objects, cooking, debates, films, bingo, billiards, etc.);
ü Therapeutic and care services;
ü Participation of residents in community life;
Affordable housing
• Continue and finalise all the construction projects started during the previous legislature;
• Within the framework of the Housing Pact 2.0 signed by the Commune with the State, we will :
ü Review the objectives of the Local Housing Action Program, with our Housing Advisor, in order to achieve, in the long term, 10% of affordable housing in the commune;
ü Create a communal and/or inter-communal housing service that will coordinate general information on housing, guidance for applicants and the administrative and technical management of communal housing;
ü Allow an experiment in the installation of Tiny Houses by developing several plots adapted and reserved for Tiny Houses;
ü To adapt the General Development Plan (PAG) and the Specific Development Plan (PAP) to allow in specific and limited areas of the municipality to increase the density of housing and to authorise taller buildings; the criteria will be elaborated by the Consultative Commission on Urban Planning and Housing.
Strengthening the “vivre-ensemble” (living together)
Integration of new citizens and foreigners
• Developing a program of intercultural meetings:
ü Accompany and support the neighborhood festival with a communication plan, street decoration, provision of communal rooms and equipment, etc;
ü Implement a MultiKulti festival with the aim of involving all the inhabitants of the municipality and sharing diversity, by allowing individuals (of different nationalities) to hold stands;
ü Encourage the realisation of a festival of living together for children;
Citizen participation
• Establish a participatory budget that will allow residents to propose and develop their own projects within the framework of a budgetary envelope reserved for this purpose.
• Reward the commitment of young people within an association or a community club;
• Organise a regular tour of each village in the commune (in turn) with the members of the Municipal Council, which would end in a public place to meet and exchange with the inhabitants;
• Review the number and tasks of the advisory commissions and create new advisory commissions (AC):
ü Children’s AC;
ü AC to improve the lives of children and families;
ü AC per village;
• Develop a “third place” within the Municipality based on the “Makerspace” model: a creative and multidisciplinary space open to all inhabitants interested in using the new digital tools to carry out their project;