FDP on other topics

The FDP wants downtown Bremen to serve more purposes: housing, education, culture, sports and dining are to matter more alongside shopping. To that end, the Domshof square, the Wallanlagen park, the Weser riverfront and open squares are to be redesigned, with residents involved through citizen workshops.

Downtown Bremen should offer more than shopping. There should be concerts on the Domshof square in the evening. New playgrounds should be built in the Wallanlagen park. There should be places for young people. Residents should be able to bring their own ideas.

On the Domshof, the morning market stays, joined by cafés, cultural space, an afternoon market on some days and open-air events in the evening. In the Wallanlagen, the FDP plans adventure playgrounds with a medieval theme, more heavily planted paths and a better link to the Viertel district, while respecting heritage protection. The Weser is to become more visible through water features and waterside activities, and the Balge river is to return as an above-ground watercourse. Squares such as Hillmannplatz are to be open for culture and sports, along with places for young people and more leisure tourism. For cleanliness, the platform calls for a smart waste concept, smart trash cans and self-cleaning public restrooms.

The FDP wants to redesign the surroundings of Bremen's main train station to make them more pleasant and safer. Squares are to host events, walkways are to be improved and the Gustav-Deetjen tunnel is to be laid out differently.

The FDP wants to make the area around Bremen's main station nicer. There should be sports and festivals on the squares. Paths should be brighter and better. Bikes should get their own lane in the tunnel. This should make the area safer.

The square in front of the Überseemuseum and Hillmannplatz are to become event venues, for example for beach volleyball, basketball, an ice rink or street food festivals. Plans include a covered glass walkway to the Überseemuseum, a well-lit path to the new central bus station (ZOB) and, later, outdoor dining in front of the Cinemaxx. The station forecourt is to become clearer through colored paving, trees, Wi-Fi and water dispensers; in the long run a promenade is to lead from the City Gate to downtown. The Gustav-Deetjen tunnel is to get lighting and art. Cyclists are to take over the current car lane there, while cars and trams share one lane.

The FDP wants to use the redevelopment after Karstadt's departure to reposition Bremerhaven's downtown and open it toward the Havenwelten waterfront. It supports private investors but demands transparency about building plans and enough open space.

The Karstadt department store in Bremerhaven is gone. The FDP wants to redesign downtown there. People should get easily from downtown to the Havenwelten at the harbor. So buildings should not stand too close together. The plans should be shown openly before building starts.

On the Eulenhof site, the former tax office and the Karstadt site, squares are to stay open; the FDP rejects overly dense construction and sees a market hall with a passage as a possible alternative. An architectural competition is to be held for the tax office site if the city develops it itself. Alongside the downtown coordinator, a permanent city manager is to return as a point of contact, with the BIS agency responsible for downtown development. The street Am Alten Hafen is considered as a bus route, and cycling in the pedestrian zone is to be allowed with mutual consideration. The public library is to move to ground-floor premises with a shop window if possible, and a meeting place for young people is planned.

The FDP rejects a ban on private fireworks on New Year's Eve. The party wants families to be able to keep up this tradition responsibly.

The FDP wants to keep fireworks on New Year's Eve legal. Families should be allowed to set off rockets privately. The FDP says most harm comes from banned firecrackers. A ban could lead more people to use those firecrackers.

The platform points out that most harm comes from firecrackers that are already illegal today. If legal fireworks were banned, the FDP fears such dangerous firecrackers would be used more often. The position applies to Bremen and Bremerhaven.

The FDP wants to set up a memorial forest in Bremerhaven where burials beneath trees are possible. So far the city has no such option.

In Bremerhaven, people cannot be buried in a forest. But many people wish for that. The FDP wants a memorial forest there. That is a forest with graves next to trees.

According to the platform, Bremerhaven offers no forest burials. Many people want a grave at the foot of a tree. Those who do often turn to memorial forests in the surrounding area.

The FDP wants to clear the repair backlog in sports halls, expand fields and halls as needed, and provide the budget funds for this. Schools and daycare centers are to work more closely with sports clubs, and the University of Bremen is to offer sports science again.

The FDP wants to repair run-down sports halls. There should be more fields and halls. Schools and daycare centers should work with sports clubs. The University of Bremen should train sports teachers again.

For building and maintaining halls, fields, and pools, the program calls for a long-term plan that is updated regularly. The FDP sees closer ties between schools, daycare centers, and clubs as especially necessary as all-day schools expand. To have enough qualified sports teachers, the former sports science degree program at the University of Bremen is to be reopened. The party wants to promote volunteering in sports clubs. In Bremerhaven, a quickly removable sports facility with painted courts and a mobile metal fence is to be set up on Willy-Brandt-Platz.

The FDP wants to support elite sports in Bremen and Bremerhaven with funding and public backing. Esports are to count as a sport regardless of game content, and esports clubs are to be recognized as nonprofit.

The FDP wants to support top-level sports with money. Esports should also count as a sport. Esports means competitions in video games. Esports clubs should get the same benefits as other sports clubs.

The program lists continued support for the Oberschule an der Ronzelenstraße and for the initiatives to create an elite school of sports. The FDP also wants to support the new Werder Bremen performance center. A "House of Athletes" is to be created for top athletes. For esports, recognition as a sport and nonprofit status for clubs are not to depend on which games are played.