Dynamic development: Many newly implemented projects underline Vienna’s commitment to progress.
Vienna (OTS/SPW-K) – In an unprecedented step to promote transparency and citizen participation, the Progress Coalition with SPÖ and Neos in Vienna launched the innovative government monitor as a red-pink evaluation tool almost three years ago. During this period, the Vienna city government has initiated numerous projects that enrich and reshape urban life in the Austrian capital. In the last quarter of 2023, this dynamic process reached another peak: over 60 additional groundbreaking projects were successfully implemented or are currently in the implementation phase. The Vienna Progress Coalition has made significant progress, particularly in the areas of “Transparent City”, “City of Culture” and “Smart City”.
Zwtl.: Vienna shines in a new cultural light: milestones in museums and strategy
An outstanding example of this development is the reopening of the Vienna Museum in December, a historical milestone in the museum landscape. The new permanent exhibition “Vienna. My History” on 3,300 m² invites all Viennese to explore the city’s rich history free of charge. The Vienna Museum is the first public museum in Austria to take this route. This milestone in Vienna’s museum policy fulfills a long-held goal formulated in the government program of the Progress Coalition.
“With free entry to the Vienna Museum’s permanent exhibition, we are opening a new chapter in cultural policy. At a time when Vienna is exceeding the impressive 2 million mark, our Vienna Museum is taking a pioneering role by being the first public museum in Austria to offer free entry. This historic step is a clear commitment to the democratization of our urban cultural heritage. It underlines our vision of a livable, affordable city in which art and culture serve as bridges of dialogue and understanding. We open doors to a place where the history of Vienna comes to life and thereby create an inclusive space for all Viennese visitors to our city.”
, says Josef Taucher, SPÖ Town Hall Club chairman, happily. In addition, a new center for children’s culture that is opening in the Floridsdorf district is another highlight. From spring 2027, the ZOOM Children’s Museum in Floridsdorf will open its second location and will also offer interactive, educationally valuable programs that introduce children to the world of art and science in a playful way. In parallel, the new Center for Children’s Literature will emphasize the importance of reading and literary education. The children’s literature center aims to provide young people with uncomplicated, age-appropriate and positive-emotional access to books and media. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2025 and handover to users in mid-2026. The house is scheduled to begin full operation in spring 2027.
City Councilor for Culture Kaup-Hasler also presented the “Cultural Strategy Vienna 2030”, which was created after an intensive dialogue with over 150 experts and thousands of citizens. This strategy focuses on affordable culture, diversity and fair pay and aims to further strengthen and democratize Vienna as a cultural metropolis.
Zwtl: Transparency in action: Vienna makes politics visible!
The Progress Coalition has also been intensively involved in the “Transparent City” area and has achieved several milestones. The outstanding innovation in the reform is the establishment of the city audit office as an independent body. This further strengthens its independence and gives it the authority to review the finances of political parties and the financial management of party academies. In addition, the caps on campaign costs were reduced and stricter sanctions were introduced for violations. These measures demonstrate the coalition’s commitment to strengthening trust in political institutions and promoting responsible, transparent politics. Vienna is setting new standards as a model for transparent and responsible administration.
“After the introduction of a government monitor and a whistleblower platform, the reform of the investigative commission and the important uniform funding guidelines, we have taken the next step that we already outlined in the 2020 election campaign with the fairness agreement we initiated. In this way, we are giving the City Audit Office more autonomy and independence. We ensure transparent party coffers, reduce election campaign costs in Vienna to a maximum of 5 million euros and, for the first time, there are severe penalties for exceeding the limit. The entire package is a milestone for even more transparency in Vienna,”
emphasizes NEOS Vienna club chairwoman Bettina Emmerling.
Zwtl: 24/7 service is online and public
The government monitor is available to all Viennese 24/7. All around 800 objectives affect the entire city, districts and neighborhoods. All points are marked in color. White means that the project is in the pipeline, yellow means that it is being implemented and projects marked in green have already been implemented. All completed projects have a link that Viennese can use to access content and information.
Website: www.wien.gv.at/regierungsabkommen2020/regierungsmonitor
Questions & Contact:
SPÖ Vienna Town Hall Club
Gwendolin Melchart
Press and media work
+43 1 4000 81929
gwendolin.melchart@spw.at
NEOS – The New Austria and Liberal Forum
Marko Knöbl
Press spokesman and deputy communications manager
+43 650 4051743
Marko. Knoebl@neos.eu