The state government of Saxony-Anhalt met for an external cabinet meeting in the town of Wolmirstedt on Tuesday, March 24, 2026. Under the leadership of Minister President Sven Schulze, the ministers discussed both general and regional issues. In this context, they dealt with the infrastructural, economic, social and cultural development in the town of Wolmirstedt and the Börde district, among other things.
Wolmirstedt’s mayor Mike Steffens and Börde district councillor Martin Stichnoth also had their say in the public part of the meeting. Mike Steffens took the opportunity to draw the state government’s attention to current issues that are important for the city administration, but above all for the citizens of Wolmirstedt and its districts.
For example, he addressed the topic of battery storage. Due to its transformer station, Wolmirstedt has long been receiving an increasing number of inquiries from investors who want to build battery storage facilities in the immediate vicinity. Until now, only operators of new wind power and photovoltaic systems have been required by law to make an annual payment to local authorities. Operators of battery storage systems have so far been exempt from this. Mike Steffens pointed this out and also explained that a catalog of criteria for battery storage systems is still missing as a requirement from the state. The mayor also commented on the so-called “construction turbo”, a federal law. Mike Steffens said that there were no recommendations for action or a specific implementing law. Local authorities are left to their own devices when it comes to implementation.
They also discussed the Wolmirstedt community school “Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz” and the all-day school “Johannes Gutenberg”, for which there are currently controversial plans to merge. It was agreed that the responsible Minister of Education, Jan Riedel, would meet with the mayor and the district administrator to discuss this issue in the near future.
The financial challenges facing the city were also discussed. These include topics such as digitalization, municipal heat planning, the implementation of the new property tax and VAT law, as well as the abolition of road expansion contributions, which, while welcome for citizens, is tearing financial holes in the city budget.
Mike Steffens also addressed specific situations that are specific to Wolmirstedt. For example, the town is currently building a new sports stadium with funding from the state. However, there is no money for a connecting road along the stadium between the nearby Kurfürst-Joachim-Friedrich-Gymnasium and the district road to Samswegen. “We would like to realize this road construction project together with the district and would like to receive funding from the state,” said Mike Steffens.
The creation of a near-natural path along the River Ohre and a cycle path from the future stadium across the Ohre to Lake Jersleber See were also requests that the mayor of Wolmirstedt made to the state government. He also used the out-of-town cabinet meeting to draw attention to the situation in two districts of Wolmirstedt. The residents in Farsleben and Mose are under considerable strain, explained Mike Steffens. They have a transformer station and a high traffic load from the state road 44 right on their doorstep. In addition, there is an increasing number of requests for battery storage facilities in both villages.
According to the mayor, some small measures could help the residents of both villages. For example, he explained, there are two crosswalks on the main road in Farsleben, but they lack proper lighting. A cycle path is also needed between Farsleben and Mose.
