Innsbruck looking for party locations
lifestyle
Several people have been injured at parties in Innsbruck’s rocky Sill Gorge in recent years. The city is now looking for suitable spaces and opportunities for the young people. The Zurich model for dealing with youth parties serves as an example.
In May of the previous year, two people fell over a rock edge in the Sill Gorge. They suffered serious injuries to their spine and finally had to be transported away with an ÖBB locomotive – more on this in Seriously injured after falls in the Sill Gorge.
A year earlier, a party guest with alcohol poisoning had to be rescued from the gorge. The Brenner railway line had to be closed at the time because there were also revelers there – more on this in the police operation at parties in the Sill Gorge.
City will develop youth strategy
A youth strategy is now to be developed. “The city’s task is to make suitable spaces and opportunities visible and accessible,” said Mayor Georg Willi (Greens).
The model of the city of Zurich was also presented at the city forum on Tuesday – a discussion format with the participation of the Innsbruck municipal council, among others. Outdoor parties were newly regulated there and the category “Youth Permit” was created, reported Andrea Kreisl from the city’s “Citizens’ Participation Office”. “This is intended to enable controlled or partially controlled parties in order to prevent escalations. At the same time, cultural freedom is created for young people and young adults,” she said.
Willi promotes more awareness and tolerance
Last year, two round tables were convened by Mayor Georg Willi after the incidents in the Sill Gorge. Representatives from politics, administration and the event scene discussed possible event alternatives to the Sill Gorge and the necessary requirements. During the talks, however, it also became clear that the topic goes beyond the question of security, as Mayor Georg Willi explained.
One should always meet many needs in public space and be considerate of different groups: “What is also needed is more awareness and tolerance in public. In a lively city, it must also be allowed to be a little louder a few times a year up to a reasonable time,” said Willi. There are many groups in Innsbruck that get involved and organize events. They should get as much support as possible from the city, said the mayor.
