Harnessing strengths and continuing to shape the future
On the evening of February 1, STIC Wirtschaftsfördergesellschaft Märkisch-Oderland hosted its traditional New Year's reception in the conference hall of STIC in Strausberg. Among the approximately 60 invited guests were the District Administrator - Mr. Gernot Schmidt, aldermen, representatives of the district council, mayors, representatives of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce and the Chamber of Crafts, the Savings Bank, the Employment Agency, the Job Center and tenants from the STIC.
The STIC managing director Andreas Jonas drew balance of the work of the circle-own promotion of economy company and gave an outlook for the current year:
"Currently, STIC Wirtschaftsfördergesellschaft employs 20 people. Due to the further positive development of the restructured four business areas of STIC, this number will continue to grow."
2022 was a good year for economic development in the county. "The TP 6 incubator continues to consistently operate at nearly 100 percent capacity. The CoWorking locations in the Old School Letschin and the Old Tax Office Bad Freienwalde are also at capacity" Jonas is pleased. The demolition of the old canteen on the STIC site should be completed by the middle of the year. After that, the district will construct a new building. 11.25 million has been earmarked for this new building. An even larger construction project at the Strausberg site is the Aviation Innovation and Education Center with planned construction costs of approximately €30 million.
"Here at the Strausberg transport airfield, there are optimal conditions, unique for Brandenburg, to drive forward an innovative cluster in the field of climate-friendly aircraft construction. This innovation center will further accelerate this development" emphasizes Jonas.
But there was also good news from the project-based core business areas of STIC Wirtschaftsfördergesellschaft: business start-ups, business succession, skilled workers, industrial sites, climate protection, energy and innovation. Since 2004, for example, 3,600 start-ups have been supported by the young companies project and the pilot service, which ended in 2022. With the establishment of the 1A Start-up Center, the STIC continues to support start-up projects, especially in the areas of innovation, environmental sustainability and the social sector.
Following, Rainer Schinkel, alderman and head of the economic office, gave an overview of the population and economic development of the district. Here, too, the positive trend of recent years continues after the stagnation during the pandemic period. "I am pleased that we welcomed our 200,000th resident to the county in the second half of last year. We will continue to advance measures to continue this positive development and develop the entire district equally" says Rainer Schinkel. This includes investments in the school infrastructure, for example in Strausberg, Hoppegarten and Altlandsberg, and the expansion of the district roads, the fire department technical center or the administration itself. Another priority project is to successfully continue the broadband expansion funded by the federal and state governments until 2025. Opportunities also arise from the key project "Eastern Railway Development Corridor" of the state's regional development strategy, which was confirmed by the state cabinet on November 29, 2022.
"Together with the project partners, the district directors and the mayors, this regional and internationally increasingly important supra-regional east-west connection will set thirteen priority development impulses in the area of the district" said Schinkel. He drew attention to the consequences of the demographic development, which is already making itself felt in a shortage of labor and skilled workers in almost all sectors. In the district, the proportion of the population capable of working has been decreasing for several years. This process will accelerate by the end of the decade. Skilled labor immigration, digitalization, qualification are the keywords that politics, but also every single company, has to deal with. The economic development in the district will support our companies with the training fair "career compass" on May 5 and 6, 2023 in the Giebelseehalle in Petershagen/ Eggersdorf or with the "BOCK", a brochure that shows pupils possibilities to start an interesting training in the district.
Finally it came still to a special appreciation. In recognition of 10 years of honorary service on the regional committee of the East Brandenburg Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the head of the Regional Center Berlin Umland, Dr. Thomas Kühne, presented Andreas Jonas with the Silver Badge of Honor.