Long search for investors for Weidenholz Castle

2023-11-26 15:59:00

WAIZENCHURCHES. Many people in the region are wondering when will the Waizenkirchner moated castle be woken from its slumber. Four years have now passed since Mayor Fabian Grüneis (ÖVP) and the former director of the Linz tobacco factory Chris Müller, as consultants, first presented the plans for an agricultural technology center and the settlement of start-ups in November 2019. Opportunities were seen for this focus because there are very successful companies in this industry in the region and also because the Waizenkirchen Agricultural College is being rebuilt and expanded into a large agricultural education center.

Nothing ready to sign yet

There have already been many discussions with the state of Upper Austria, the Federal Monuments Office and possible investors. “There are positive signals from the state and potential interested parties, but we need companies to sign,” says Mayor Fabian Grüneis in an interview with OÖNachrichten. Because of course you couldn’t renovate the municipally owned castle until investors were on board. “The Agricultural Technology and Innovation Center is an economic project, not a public institution, and is intended to be self-sustaining through purchase and rental income,” emphasizes Grüneis.

The cost estimates are still very vague; there is talk of a double-digit million amount. There is also a desire for a beautiful event hall for the market town. The Federal Monuments Office also insists on the preservation and renovation of the half-dilapidated four-story “mansion” on the castle grounds, which presents a sad picture. “You can’t just sand it away, but there should be support from the culture and monument fund,” says Grüneis.

Support from “Leaders”

With the support of the Mostlandl Leader Region, the community is currently looking for a project partner to support the marketing. The goal is to find out next year whether there is a market for it or not. “If not, we’ll just have to think of something new for the castle and be creative, but I do believe that an agricultural technology center with research and development would be a great fit,” says Grüneis.

The state music school is housed in the renovated part of the castle. The local history and culture organization has set up two exhibition rooms and a regional image archive in the cherry wing.