Commercial and Industrial Area Heidelberg–Leimen Receives Highest State Funding

€120,000 for Municipal Land Management

The intermunicipal commercial and industrial area Heidelberg–Leimen (Economy Park Heidelberg-Leimen) is receiving €120,000 in funding from the state. This is the highest grant awarded this year by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Regional Development and Housing under the program “Gaining Land Through Inner Development.” The Economy Park Heidelberg-Leimen is being developed along the boundary between the two cities, where the industrial and commercial areas Rohrbach-Süd and Leimen-Nord directly adjoin each other. Covering an area of around 100 hectares — roughly 140 football fields — it is the largest intermunicipal commercial area in Baden-Württemberg.

“We are pleased that our concept has been met with such a positive response from the state. The funding enables us to purposefully advance the development of the Economy Park Heidelberg-Leimen in all areas,” says John Ehret, Chair of the Intermunicipal Commercial and Industrial Area Heidelberg-Leimen Association and Lord Mayor of the City of Leimen.

“Municipal land management fills an important gap between planning and implementation. Our approach is pragmatic, cooperative, and geared toward sustainability. With municipal land management, we address challenges that traditional urban planning and economic development tools cannot resolve,” explains Jürgen Odszuck, Deputy Chair of the association and First Mayor of the City of Heidelberg.

Extensive Land Potential

The intermunicipal commercial and industrial area Heidelberg–Leimen has extensive land potential. About half of the roughly 100-hectare development area is already built up, but includes vacant properties, gaps between buildings, and multiple development opportunities. The funding will be used to hire a municipal land manager directly for the association. People working in this role drive the development of the Economy Park Heidelberg-Leimen and bring vacant land into new use. Land managers actively support and guide this process.

About the Economy Park

The Economy Park Heidelberg-Leimen aims to develop into an innovative, sustainable, and resilient commercial and industrial area, with a focus on research, development, and production in the fields of medical technology and sustainable, innovative construction materials.

As part of the urban development funding program, also provided by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Regional Development and Housing, the project received €3.2 million in 2023. More information is available online at www.economypark.de.

Background: State Program “Gaining Land Through Inner Development”

The current state program “Gaining Land Through Inner Development” subsidizes the hiring of two new municipal land managers — one in Heidelberg and one in Heiligenberg on Lake Constance — as well as 21 additional projects with a total of around €978,000. The funding program is aimed at cities, municipalities, districts, and intermunicipal associations, among others. It has been fundamentally revised and further developed in recent years. Since the program was introduced in 2009, the state of Baden-Württemberg has supported nearly 500 projects with around €14.8 million. Since municipal land management became part of the program in 2016, 38 land managers have been funded.