Host Nation Update, Dec. 9, 2022
New ICE line Stuttgart-Ulm – Three Americans on involuntary test run
On Tuesday morning, three American tourists boarded a train in Plochingen to travel to Metzingen. However, they were to arrive there only with abundant delay after an involuntary detour to Ulm. The train they had boarded was on the new Wendlingen-Ulm line, which will not go into operation until Friday, for test purposes. The involuntary passengers thus got their first taste of the four-billion-euro line across the Swabian Alb. (Stuttgarter Nachrichten, Dec. 8)
Specialists in action – War bomb is defused – thousands of Heidelberg residents affected
Due to the defusing of a World War II bomb in Heidelberg, a larger area around the main station will be closed on Friday morning. Around 7 a.m., the evacuation is to begin, affecting several thousand people, according to the city. Schools, colleges and kindergartens in the area will remain closed Friday. A full closure of the main station and train traffic should be avoided as long as possible.
By 12 noon, all people in the evacuation zone must have vacated their homes or workplaces and left the exclusion zone. “Emergency forces of the city and police will go from house to house in the affected area, ring at doors and inform with loudspeaker announcements.” A time for the defusing has not yet been determined, a 50-meter security radius around the discovery site will remain in place overnight, the city and police said Thursday. The 250-pound bomb discovered at a construction site had been secured by the explosive ordnance disposal service and was being guarded by police. It had been found on Thursday during construction work near the main train station. The evacuation radius – which includes much of Bahnstadt and parts of Bergheim – includes the F&U campus, Bahnstadt Elementary School and Schiller University. The city is setting up a staging area in the SNP dome multipurpose hall for people who have no other place to stay during the evacuation. (Stgt Nachrichten, Dec 9)
Sindelfingen: Drinking water will become more expensive as of January 1
For a household in a single-family house, the costs will increase by about 4.50 euros per month. The Sindelfingen municipal utility will raise drinking water prices on January 1. This will involve an increase in the energy price and also in the annual base price. Background for the water price increase are continuously rising costs in the water supply. This is reported by the municipal utilities in a press release.
These costs include, for example, material and labor costs for the maintenance of the infrastructure, for replacement investments in elevated water tanks or repair measures in the event of pipe bursts, as well as expenses for pump power. However, the costs for water purchases from the upstream supplier, Lake Constance Water Supply, have also continued to rise sharply. Therefore, from January 1, the consumption-based energy price will increase by 0.24 euros per cubic meter gross. In addition, the basic price will be increased depending on the nominal size and type of water meter. For example, for the QN 2.5 meter (glandless), which is predominantly installed in Sindelfingen (90 percent), the annual base price increases by 19.02 euros gross. Overall, for a typical 4-person household (annual consumption 150 cubic meters) with the QN 2.5 meter, this is an increase of 54.33 euros per year or 4.53 euros per month. The general prices and conditions are available on the Internet (homepage www.stadtwerke-sindelfingen.de), are on display at the offices of Stadtwerke Sindelfingen and can be viewed or collected during normal business hours. They can also be sent free of charge on request. (BB.heute.de, Dec 9)
German-American Center hosts documentary screening and discussion with filmmakers Dec. 12
On Dec. 12, 2022, the German-American Center in Stuttgart will host a screening of the documentary ‘Dear Sirs,’ followed by a discussion with the American filmmakers. Dear Sirs tells the story of an unusual journey through history as a young American tries to learn more about his grandfather’s captivity during WWII by cycling 800 kilometers through Europe.
The event is free of charge, held in English, and begins at 7 p.m. at the Renitenztheater in Stuttgart (Büchsenstr. 26). Participants are requested to register by December 11 at anmeldung@daz.org.
(Information courtesy Deutsch-Amerikanisches Zentrum/James-F.-Byrnes-Institut)
