Visit from Berlin at Eckertweg

High-ranking visitor in Eckertweg: At the end of her stay in Aachen, Studierendenwerk was pleased to welcome the Federal Minister for Housing, Urban Development and Construction, Klara Geywitz, in the "Studentendorf" dormitory on Friday evening. The meeting was organized by Ye-One Rhie, a member of the Bundestag from Aachen.

A busy minister naturally does not have time for a relatively spontaneous visit - but Klara Geywitz did not miss the opportunity to get an impression of student life in a typical Aachen student dormitory. After a tour through rooms and kitchen, there was even an opportunity for an exchange with the residents, student representatives and Studierendenwerk, much to the delight of all present.

Personal dialog with the students was particularly important to the minister, whose focus is on social and climate-friendly housing. She was interested in wishes, experiences and needs that play a major role in the development of new sustainable housing concepts, also with regard to the topic of urban development. The students emphasized the importance of communal spaces; Corona in particular had shown that the opportunities for social exchange in a residence hall were of high importance. In addition, they reported on the fundamental overload of the Aachen housing market and the difficulty for students without means to obtain affordable housing from Studierendenwerk, with around 4,000 applicants. The new "micro-apartments" being built by private providers are only suitable for students from wealthier households because of their horrendous rents, said Ole Lee, social affairs officer of AStA at RWTH Aachen University.

The minister also sees the need: "According to Deutsches Studentenwerk, there is a shortage of around 25,000 dormitory places. That's why it's important that part of the funding for social housing development set for 2022 also goes to the student unions." She pointed out, however, that the states have a responsibility here to use the available funds according to need.

Of course, the minister also directed questions to the managing director of Studierendenwerk, Sebastian Böstel. She was particularly interested in the existing room concepts in the 24 student housing complexes, but also in what new ideas for student housing can be implemented in Aachen and how the land and construction cost situation is shaping up. Sebastian Böstel reported that the student unions were not among the "preferred addressees" when it came to allocating state land, and that prices came into play here that were miles away from social aspects. "Of course, this makes the construction of new dormitories all the more difficult, so we would have to fall back on the few areas we own," Böstel said. However, he said, these are not always suitable for use and require special construction concepts. He also conceded that there would have to be adequate financing offers in the future. The existing ones were going nowhere, especially in the case of the student unions, and that urgently needed to change on the state side.

The minister took a lot of input with her when she left again at around nine o'clock. At the end, all participants agreed that it was a profitable exchange in the context of a relaxed round of talks, in which the minister showed herself to be very interested, down-to-earth and approachable. She conveyed that in her job at the Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Construction, she also cares about the students' concerns. So the people of Aachen were also happy to forgive her for unknowingly referring to Printen, a small gift from the member of Bundestag Rhie, as a kind of "gingerbread" ...