Drug alarm in Margareten: District chief announces strict measures!

Drug alarm in Margareten: District chief announces strict measures!

In Vienna's 5th district, Margareten, residents and passers-by are increasingly having to contend with a worrying increase in open drug use, syringes lying around and unhygienic toilet facilities. Matzleinsdorfer Platz and the surrounding area along the belt are particularly affected. District leader Michael Luxenberger from the Greens then recognized the need for immediate measures and scheduled a security summit in the district office to develop solutions. At this meeting, which is planned for Thursday afternoon, the police, the Wiener Linien, the ÖBB as well as representatives of municipal departments and the Addiction and Drug Coordination Vienna will come together to discuss the situation in the district and to devise possible interventions. According to Heute, Luxenberger emphasizes that security and humanity must go hand in hand.

The drama of the situation is underlined by the daily checks by the police and security services at the subway and tram stations in Margareten. However, Luxenberger calls for sustainable solutions that go beyond simply repressing addicted people. Following on from this, money will be made available for the first time from 2026 for increased social work in public spaces in order to cover the need for help. The mobile facility “sam – socially safe, active mobile” is also supported. The security summit does not just function as a one-off event, but is intended to be the start of further discussions, the results of which will be presented at the next district council meeting.

Street social work project

In order to better get the effects of drug use under control, the organization Fixpunkt e.V. is carrying out a city-wide project for street social work and cross-district monitoring. This project was created in the context of the security summit in Berlin, where the focus is on strengthening security in public spaces. The aim is to curb increasing drug consumption, homelessness and the overuse of public spaces. Information about Fixpunkt shows that a city-wide strategy should be developed to improve the quality of stay in urban areas and to facilitate access to drug and addiction help.

However, the wheel does not need to be reinvented: previous drug-related street social work was often dependent on district funding. The new project allows for more flexibility and ensures that social services are expanded to those districts that previously did not have their own access to support services. A particular focus is on outreach and activating social work, especially for homeless people and drug users. Local actors should be actively involved in order to moderate conflicts and activate resources in the social space.

Dealing with drugs in urban areas

The issue of drug use in urban areas raises many questions about safety. Members of open drug scenes are often perceived as a security risk, which creates a difficult dynamic. A project called DRUSEC has set itself the task of examining the objective risks and the subjectively perceived dangers. This shows that there is often a lack of objective assessment of the situation and calls for recommendations for dealing with drug use in urban areas. More about this on Sifo.

The challenges in Margareten are complex and require joint action by everyone involved in order to increase the quality of life and safety for everyone. A constructive dialogue between the various actors could be the key to bringing about lasting positive changes.