Munich Budget 2025: Looking for citizen ideas for the future of the city!

Munich Budget 2025: Looking for citizen ideas for the future of the city!

An exciting experiment in citizen participation has gained momentum in Munich: The new Munich budget for 2025 provides a total of one million euros to promote ideas from the population. Mayor Dieter Reiter invites all Munich residents aged 14 and over to take an active part and submit their own suggestions for city design. Younger citizens can do this accompanied by their parents. The proposals must include specific projects that are within the city's area of ​​responsibility and may cost a maximum of 100,000 euros. The aim is to use the diversity and creativity of the population to make the cityscape attractive, according to Süddeutsche.de.

Ideas can now be submitted via the Unser.muenchen.de platform. An initial access number already shows that citizen participation is well received - 280 ideas had already been submitted by May 27, 2025, mostly in the categories “Urban Design” and “Environment and Sustainability”. The spectrum ranges from suggestions for greening streets to new playgrounds and trash cans. What could be a better incentive than the opportunity to actively shape your own neighborhood?

Participation process and time frame

The deadline for submitting proposals is June 9, 2025. This will be followed by a voting phase in which citizens can decide on their favorites between June 17 and 30. The 20 proposals that receive the most votes will be examined for feasibility from July to October 2025. A final vote will take place from October 15th to 31st, 2025. This ensures a transparent and participatory process — a model that has inspired numerous cities such as Paris and Barcelona. The concept was already decided in November 2023, based on an application from 2021 and shows how important citizen participation is for urban development, as unser.muenchen.de emphasizes.

In contrast to the city district budget, which supports local projects, the Munich budget is aimed at city-wide projects. This opens up new opportunities for holistic approaches to urban development in which all responsible bodies and actors are included in the process. Such participatory models play a central role in sustainable urban development, as can also be seen in other cities, for example in the Dragonera area in Berlin or in projects in Lindlar and Lübeck that are characterized by citizen participation Urban construction funding.

Looking into the future

The pilot test of the Munich budget will last a total of three years and will be a valuable experience for the city administration and citizens alike. The money saved for specific projects should not result in any permanent expenses, which does not put a strain on the city's financial framework. “The green bridge”, a concept for a green roof over railway tracks towards Pasing and Obermenzing, could perhaps become reality and show how profitable citizen participation can be. Connecting previously separate neighborhoods could significantly improve mobility for pedestrians and cyclists.

So the ball is now in Munich’s court: take advantage of the opportunity to contribute your ideas and actively influence the cityscape! The city can't wait to see citizens' creative suggestions.