After the town of Penzberg had to withdraw from the 2028 State Garden Show for financial reasons, there is now a new venue: Donauwörth has agreed to organize the Bavarian event.
The Bavarian town of Donauwörth has volunteered to host the 2028 State Garden Show. It now has four years to plan the major event. Photo: Flodur63, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
New venue opens up new opportunities
In August 2024, the Bavarian town of Donauwörth volunteered to host the 2028 State Garden Show. After the original organizer, the town of Penzberg, had to withdraw due to financial constraints, this was welcome news. Bavarian Environment Minister Thorsten Glauber said: “State garden shows are real opportunities for Bavaria’s towns and municipalities. State garden shows offer a wide range of opportunities for sustainable urban development. Donauwörth will be a great host for the 2028 State Garden Show.”
City by the river as a theme for the Donauwörth 2028 State Garden Show
The city of Donauwörth has quickly presented a concept for hosting the Bavarian State Garden Show 2028. It wants to further develop green recreational areas, set new urban development accents and upgrade areas. With the support of the State Garden Show, it will be possible to implement many visions that the city has had for some time. “It is particularly important to me that it is a joint project for and above all with the citizens – because we are all Donauwörth. Everyone should see themselves reflected in the State Garden Show and look forward to proudly showing guests from near and far our beautiful town,” says Donauwörth’s Lord Mayor Jürgen Sorré.
The city of Donauwörth has three approaches for the State Garden Show: “City by the river”, “Connecting natural spaces” and “Making the cycle and footpath network more attractive”. To this end, it is planning to better link the existing open space system around the old town promenade and the Wörnitz floodplain and to renovate or upgrade some of them. New public green and leisure spaces in the Donaubogen and on the site of the former Schwabenhalle are to create a park-like connection to the Donauspitz in order to link the city more closely with the Danube. Among other things, a beach is to be created on the great river to make it more accessible. Upgrades are also planned along the small Wörnitz as part of the “City by the River” theme.
Three planned bridges
Donauwörth is also planning further landscape development measures along the valuable floodplain and heathland landscapes. In addition, the existing paths along the rivers are to be expanded and optimized, including new crossings over the Wörnitz and the Danube. The aim is to make the area more attractive for cycling and walking.
Another component of the concept for the 2028 State Garden Show in Donauwörth is a new connection via the B2 federal highway. This currently divides the city, but now a direct link between the promenade and Parkstadt is to eliminate this separation and at the same time enable new neighborhood development projects.
The central site of the Donauwörth State Garden Show is to be built on the previously unadorned Volksfestplatz near the train station. After 2028, it will remain as a green and recreational area. The former commercial area on Zusamweg is to house a large Park + Ride parking lot and at the same time be used as a new, large event site for public festivals and circuses.
A city balcony is also planned in the area of the cathedral, offering a view of the Wörnitzauen. Some of these measures, such as the three planned bridges, are already part of the city’s agenda and budget planning. Other measures can only be realized with the support of the State Garden Show. One challenge for the city will be to approve and build measures such as the pedestrian and cycle bridges within just four years.
A well thought-out concept
A state garden show takes place in Bavaria almost every year. The state’s Ministry of the Environment has been involved in promoting garden shows for 44 years and has already provided a total of around 80 million euros in funding. As a result, almost 550 hectares of land in the state have been newly landscaped and upgraded – about as much as 760 soccer pitches. Over 25 million people have already visited the state garden shows in Bavaria.
The large district town of Donauwörth is now the successor to Penzberg. The town had already expressed interest in 2021 for the period from 2028 to 2032, but then refrained from bidding out of consideration for a neighboring town. It wanted to avoid competition in the district of Donau-Ries.
But after Penzberg had to withdraw, Landesgartenschau GmbH, together with the Ministry of the Environment, encouraged Donauwörth to apply as a successor. As the town is not starting from scratch – it also applied once before in 2007 – it has the advantage of already having a well thought-out concept. Thanks to the increase in subsidies for state garden shows recently approved by Bavaria, grants of up to 80 percent are now possible. For the first time, the realization of a state garden show will be funded with up to one million euros. Donauwörth has defined a maximum own contribution of 8.2 million euros.