Budget 2025

Lech expects a deficit of over two million euros

Sparing no expense: In the municipality of Lech, smaller buns will be baked in future following the construction of the new community center.(Bild: Mathis Fotografie)

In the first municipal council meeting of the current year, the budget for 2025 was approved in Lech am Arlberg. No major investments are planned due to the tight financial situation.  

The sophisticated winter sports resort on the Arlberg is known to have a heavy backpack to carry when it comes to finances, which is mainly due to the newly built community center. A turnaround is nowhere in sight for the current year either: the municipality is expecting income of just under 28.9 million euros, compared to expenses of a good 30.9 million euros. The bottom line is a deficit of 2.1 million euros, and at the end of the year the total debt will amount to around 54.2 million euros - which, to put it bluntly, is a proud sum for a village of 1,600 inhabitants. However, Lech is not a Waldviertel village of sorrel, but a world-class tourist destination, and the municipal income is correspondingly high - and consequently there are also many opportunities to make adjustments.

Investment in the preservation of existing buildings
What has been done in Lech: For example, the tourism contribution has been adjusted and second home taxes have been increased. In addition, those responsible are expecting increasing revenues from the property and economic activities of the municipality: the local authority wants to generate over one million euros from this - that would be 50 percent more than in the previous year. This also explains why the total income is likely to be around 860,000 euros higher than in 2024, which is not a matter of course in view of the falling revenue share from the federal government. Mayor Gerhard Lucian emphasizes that no castles in the air are built when it comes to finances: "We always calculate our planned expenditure very generously and income rather cautiously."

On the expenditure side, smaller buns will be baked at Arlberg in the coming year after the 54 million euro community center. 1.9 million euros will be spent on the renovation of roads, bridges and protective water structures, 1.4 million euros on the maintenance and expansion of the water supply and 1.3 million euros on the sewage system. Like all municipalities, Lech also has to contend with rising personnel costs as a result of inflation, which will total around 6.3 million euros in 2025.