Experience Report
What does the pedestrian precinct in Troisdorf look
like ?
The pedestrian precinct in Troisdorf is always open to visitors. The
sign for that are two big, open gates of glass at both main entrances. They
welcome every visitor and guide him into the varied pedestrian precinct.
From outside, the pedestrian precinct seems like a great shopping-center
under the sky. In front of the shops, there are park benches, trees and small
flower beds. There are also different fountains and wall paintings or
sculptures which decorate the pedestrian precinct.
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Which different shops does the pedestrian precinct
offer to the visitors? And what are the opening hours?
The pedestrian precinct in Troisdorf offers a great number of different
shops. There are two big shopping centres where you can buy almost everything:
Food, stationary, kitchen equipment, textile, tools,... The other shops are
specialised in selling one kind of item.
That’s why there are many boutiques to be found, next to some
delicatessen, shops which sell electrical goods, stationery shops, chemists,
bakeries, opticians and a lot of other shops. But you can also find different
doctors, hotels, banks, hairdressers, beautyshops, ice-parlours, cafés,
restaurants and attractions like dancing schools and a cinema. Above the shops
there are apartments which are all rented at the moment. Apartments in the
pedestrian precinct are handy and so they’re very popular.
The "Bürgerhaus" (a community centre) is situated in the
middle of the pedestrian precinct. That’s a convenient place for concerts, carnival sittings, theatre-performances and so on. Apart
from that there’s the city-library and the user centre in the
"Bürgerhaus".
Apart from the inhabitants of Troisdorf, there are also a lot of
visitors from towns near the town, so Troisdorf has to offer enough
possibilities to park near the pedestrian precinct. Although there are already
many car parks and three big parking garages in the town centre, some more
places to park have been planned for the future, because they’re practical and
more convenient for fast purchases.
The opening hours of the shops are different. While the big shopping centers
are opened from 9:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m., you can buy in the smaller shops
between 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Some shops have got a break between 12:00 p.m.
and 2:00 p.m. Chemist’s shops, banks, offices and so on don’t work as long as
the other shops. And coffee houses, restaurants and bars, where you can sit
outside, if the sun is shining, open in the morning and close any time during
the night.
The pedestrian precinct is varied and offers something for everyone. As
soon as a shop goes bust, almost everything is tried so that this room doesn’t
stay empty for too long.
Development and changes of the pedestrian precinct
Troisdorf has been an independent town since 1952. The pedestrian
precinct was built-up 31 years later, in 1983 on a main-street of Troisdorf. First
there were many gaps but then the pedestrian precinct of Troisdorf was
completed slowly until it looked like it does today. The pedestrian precinct
has got a convenient position. It is situated in the middle of the city, next
to the station and the townhall.
Troisdorf isn’t today just a big "shopping-city" because of
the pedestrian precinct, which can hold its own against the larger cities of
Bonn and Cologne. Already 15 years ago many visitors from around Troisdorf came
to the biggest city of the "Rhein- Sieg"-county, to shop. The reason
was, that Troisdorf offered the first and only department store,
"Hertie", in the whole "Rhein-Sieg"-county. In spite of a
big turn-over the department-store had to close after some years, because in
Siegburg and St. Augustin, two neighbouring towns, huge shopping centres had
also opened.
To keep the customers, different shopping centres were opened in the
building of the former "Hertie", but although they were promising in
the beginning, they had to close after some years, like the shopping centre
"KAUFHALLE" which we’ve got today. Since a much greater shopping
centre has opened in the middle of Troisdorf, "KAUFLAND" which offers
the customers much more choice, it has got much more difficult for the other
shops to keep their customers. That’s why "Kaufhalle" is going to
close on the 1st of June 1998. The other reasons are: cheaper competition, rent
is too high and the loss of many customers which have changed to
"KAUFLAND". Of course the big building won’t stay closed for a long
time. (For further information take a look at "Interview
mit KAUFLAND").
But there isn’t just a competition between the big shopping centers. Also
every small shop fights for its existence. Everyone who wants to open a new
shop has to offer a good quality for a low price. The pedestrian precinct lives
from free market economy. The supply is directed by the demand. At the moment
"KAUFLAND" is having an effect on every shop in the pedestrian
precinct, because of the low prices and the good quality of their goods.
But the pedestrian precinct isn’t just developing into a big shopping
place, it’s also developing into a place for free-time and fun. The coffee
houses, restaurants and the new cinema in the building of "KAUFLAND"
invite young and older people and the park benches aren’t only in summer very
popular as meeting points for teenagers.
Which parties take place in the pedestrian precinct?
Every year in February the popular Carnivaltrain moves through the town,
in May there’s the spring-market, in July the city-celebration, in October the
autumn market and in December the Santa Clause-market. At every event you can
buy souvenirs, presents and snacks. Events like computer- and other trade fairs
take place in the "Bürgerhaus".
Troisdorf is called "Shopping-adventure". How
is this meant?
Although the city attracts many visitors, it isn’t a shopping-adventure
for everyone, because most of the visitors don’t stay as long as some hours in
the city. But if they pass a whole day in the pedestrian precinct, they can
visit the whole pedestrian precinct and other nice sights of Troisdorf. In this
case Troisdorf can be called a shopping-adventure. This is the aim of the city.
Problems of the pedestrian precinct
The town council is really worried about the future of the pedestrian
precinct of Troisdorf. Although it has got many visitors at the moment, which
are attracted by the different cafés and shops, the city must think about the
problems of the pedestrian precinct and it must try to reduce or remove them. Many
shop owners complain about the "KAUFLAND" because they think that it
takes away their customers and that it was a wrong decision of the town council
to give permission to have it built.
The position of the "Bürgerhaus" has also been called a
mistake in the past. It would have been better if the city had built a shopping
center in this area, in the middle of the pedestrian precinct. But now it’s too
late.
But there are also problems which can be solved, for example, the
parking fees in the parking garages. That’s why it’s planned to create more
parking-spaces in the future open all day. There should be parking on the
ground free of charge. Another problem is how to keep the pedestrian precinct
clean. Other problems are empty shop-buildings, which are in the head lines and
the opening times. The empty spaces have to be rented out and the shop owners
have to agree on common opening times.
An inevitable problem, which the city can’t manage, is shoplifting, which
has considerably increased since last year. Even two automobile-accidents with
people injured took place in the pedestrian precinct, which is normally a car
free zone.
It is thought about creating new attractions in Troisdorf to make the
city appear more lively.
And first people have to stop comparing Troisdorf with Cologne and Bonn
and thos allowing the town to go it’s own way.