Wanfried's mayor Thilo Vogt takes stock after 100 days in office!

Wanfried's mayor Thilo Vogt takes stock after 100 days in office!

After 100 days in office as mayor of the city of Wanfried, Thilo Vogt (CDU) draws a consistently positive conclusion. The politician, who won the election with 56.43% of the vote, was considerably nervous before the results were announced, but describes the victory as the result of hard work and emphasizes the support of his family and the CDU. His competitor Margit Gebhard, who narrowly lost with 43.57% of the vote, is not discouraged and plans to stand for the local elections next year. [HNA] [Werra-Rundschau]

A lot has happened in the town hall since he took office. Vogt has moved into a smaller, directly accessible office and uses a height-adjustable desk. It is noticeable that the town hall door remains closed during opening hours; Access is only possible after ringing the bell and stating your name. In order to better take the needs of the younger generation into account, a new daycare working group was created. Here, daycare center management and party representatives are working together on measures to expand child care. The plan calls for creating a large daycare center on the site of the old elementary school and expanding the location on Ringstrasse [HNA].

Transport initiative and citizen participation

A topic that also concerns the mayor is the traffic situation in Wanfried. After a thorough traffic test, flower pots were removed, which relieved traffic and increased parking space on Marktstrasse. A larger parking area in front of the city park is currently being examined; a solution is still pending. Vogt plans to introduce online appointment booking for administrative matters from December in order to further optimize citizen service [HNA].

A particularly innovative concept that is being discussed in the region is the introduction of a child mayor. This format makes it possible to give children a voice in politics and to incorporate their interests into decision-making processes. The example of Thalheim, where children's mayors have been successfully in office since 2018, shows how effective and valuable this participation can be for the municipality. Children's mayors act as a mouthpiece for their peers and make active contributions to projects such as the selection of play equipment and tree planting campaigns.a href=”https://kommunal.de/kinderbuergermeister-kommunalpolitik” class=”source_3″>[Kommunal]

Outlook for the future

When asked about budget planning for 2026, Vogt is respectful of the complexity of this task - he is currently in a learning phase. The monthly citizens' consultation hour, which runs until the end of the year, has so far offered four to eight citizens per appointment the opportunity to discuss concerns directly with the mayor. These consultation hours are to be evaluated in 2026 in order to better understand the needs of Wanfried residents [HNA].

Although Thilo Vogt is only at the beginning of his term in office, it is already clear that he is looking to the future with a clear focus on being close to the citizens and improving municipal structures. The participation of citizens, especially the younger generation, plays a central role in his planning.