VP retreat

The Linz personnel carousel keeps turning

Following the departure of Klaus Luger (r.), Dietmar Prammer is now head of Linz City Hall

(Bild: Dostal Harald/© Harald Dostal / 2023)

Following the departure of city leader Klaus Luger (SPÖ) in the wake of the Brucknerhaus affair, Linz's personnel carousel continued to turn on Thursday. Karin Hörzing, who had initially taken over as deputy mayor, handed over the helm to Dietmar Prammer.

Supervisory board positions in municipal companies will also have to be filled in the near future. ÖVP Deputy Mayor Hajart announced his withdrawal from these bodies and the nomination of independent candidates.

Former city councillor Dietmar Prammer was promoted to first deputy mayor on Thursday and is now in charge. Hörzing is now only the third - instead of the previous first - deputy mayor, while the previous third deputy mayor Tina Blöchl (all SPÖ) is now only a city councillor. The background to the reshuffle: Prammer also wants to run in the mayoral election on January 12. However, he must first undergo an internal party member vote, for which he is the only candidate. Martin Hajart is also running for the ÖVP, Michael Raml for the FPÖ, Eva Schobesberger for the Greens, Georg Redlhammer for the NEOS, Gerlinde Grünn for the KPÖ and Lorenz Potocnik for Linz+.

Current order necessary
There will also be new appointments in the companies of the City of Linz, which were triggered by the withdrawal of Luger as mayor. The vacant position of Chairperson of the Supervisory Board at Linz AG must already be filled on Friday. Karin Hörzing could be elected as Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board, for how long remains to be seen.

External appointment possible
There is also talk of eventually filling the post with an external person from outside party politics. Following Luger's departure, the former rector of the JKU Linz, Meinhard Lukas, was appointed as the new chairman of the supervisory board at LIVA. Whether this model could also serve as a model for other new appointments remains to be seen. A new chairman is also up for election at Flughafen Linz GmbH, where the province of Upper Austria with Provincial Councillor Markus Achleitner (VP) is also playing a role.

Withdrawal announced
ÖVP Deputy Mayor Hajart announced his withdrawal from the municipal supervisory boards at the municipal council meeting on Thursday afternoon: "I will resign from my supervisory board functions in the municipal companies and we will nominate people from outside the municipal government." He is currently Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Linz AG, Chairman of the Linz-Linien Supervisory Board and a member of the Supervisory Board of the airport. Successors will be nominated by the next meeting, according to Hajart.