On Tuesday, June 4, the political representatives of the Citizens’ Forum selected, by a large majority, the topic “How can Aachen become more attractive to families with children?” as the focus for the second Aachen Citizens’ Council. This fall, the Aachen Citizens’ Council will enter its second round and convene to address this priority. Before the decision was made, Aachen residents proposed 61 topics, and 33 of them reached the required quorum of 125 votes of support. Using a complex decision-making matrix they developed themselves, the steering committee selected five finalists for discussion in the Citizens’ Forum. These five topics were publicly debated and discussed with those in attendance at the Citizens’ Forum. The members of the steering committee provided an impressive introduction to their self-developed decision-making process and explained exactly how they selected these five topics from the 33 proposals.
Jessica Rosen, a member of the steering committee and former member of the 2023 Citizens’ Council, was impressed by the steering committee’s preparatory work: “I was very impressed by the steering committee’s dedication. The detailed and thoughtful reflections that everyone contributed to the process and to the submitted questions were fascinating and diverse. Seeing how deeply committed people dedicate their free time to our urban community was an inspiration to me.”
After a brief survey of the opinions of the spokespersons for the political groups, the topic was finalized: the issue of family won out by a large majority.
Mayor Sibylle Keupen, for whom the Citizens' Council is a cause close to her heart, welcomes the Citizens' Forum's vote.
“I’m excited about the 66 proposals and topics that were submitted; the topic that has now been selected draws attention to important aspects of life in our city. Families and children are Aachen’s future, and they should feel at home in our city. This is a great foundation for the city’s future.”
Mathias Dopatka, the chair of the Citizens’ Forum, is also more than satisfied: “The meeting was a success; the atmosphere was good, and everyone had a chance to speak. It quickly became clear that one topic garnered overwhelming support. I’m certain that the second Aachen Citizens’ Council, with the chosen topic, will discuss entirely new approaches to further improving the quality of life for families in Aachen. That will be good for the city.”
The person who came up with the idea for the selected proposal is welcome to contact the Citizens’ Secretariat; we would be happy to take that person’s specific reasons and ideas into account.
In the next step, the 3,500 Aachen residents selected by lottery will be contacted and will receive a letter in the mail inviting them to participate in the Citizens’ Assembly. From among those who respond positively, the final panel of 56 members will then be selected by lottery in a second step.
Anyone interested in learning more about the Aachen Citizens' Council can find additional information at www.aachen.de/buerger_innenrat.
If you have any questions, Albert Halfmann from the Department of Citizen Dialogue and Administrative Management is also available to answer them by phone at 0241 432-7223 or by email at buerger_innenrat@mail.aachen.de.