Almost 3,400 Ukrainian refugees are currently seeking protection from the war in their homeland in Wiesbaden.

Though the influx isn't as strong as it was a few weeks ago, the city expects to provide more housing and is looking for buildings for people to live in.

Head of Social Affairs Christoph Manjura (SPD) said that several hundred Ukrainians who still live with relatives and friends will soon need apartments.

This will be a challenge in the state capital's already tense market.

According to Manjura, of the almost 3,400 Ukrainians, as of Monday afternoon, around 1,140 live in community accommodation, 434 in Wiesbaden hotels and 1,822 refugees are housed privately.

"Especially for the refugees who stayed with friends and family in the first few weeks after the outbreak of war and for whom it was not checked whether there was enough space, we are acquiring further apartments and accommodation," the head of the social affairs department outlined the situation.

While he does not assume that all 1822 would have to be housed elsewhere, he does reckon that "a three-digit number" Ukrainians will need another roof over their heads.

This trend is recognizable, and in some Wiesbaden Facebook groups hosts are currently looking for apartments for the refugees they have taken in.

Refugee accommodation already quite full

Last week, the city converted the Wettiner Straße gymnasium into an emergency shelter.

According to Manjura, around 50 people are currently living in the hall, which is designed for 140 refugees.

From there, the people arriving in the state capital are distributed to other accommodations.

There are now around 50 accommodations of various sizes in the city.

The Kastel Housing alone offers space for 750 people.

The accommodation on Hans-Bredow-Strasse, with its maximum of 550 places, is already quite full, Manjura explained and went on to say that the other accommodations were spread across the city.

Because it is difficult to look after so many people in small residential units, the city wants to rent more buildings that allow places in the three-digit range.

Although this does not actually correspond to the Wiesbaden line, which provides for decentralized accommodation of people, there is no other way to solve it due to the current situation.

In addition, refugees accommodated in hotels also need other living space in the long term, he further noted.

Around 800 Ukrainians have already received a residence permit in Wiesbaden, and according to Manjura, 100 to 200 are added each week.

These people can apply for social housing.

However, the chance of being able to move into a subsidized apartment in Wiesbaden is slim.

According to Manjura, there are criteria that favor people from shared accommodation under certain circumstances, but the waiting lists are long.

Therefore, the Ukraine refugees are always advised to also look on the privately financed housing market.

"The job center pays the rent up to the average of the rent index and not just the rent for subsidized apartments," explains the head of social affairs.

In order to answer these and other questions about housing, the municipal housing agency has set up a hotline that can be reached on 0611/31 31 63.

There, citizens can find out about the allocation of social housing and what requirements must be met for this.

Anyone who has taken in a Ukrainian family, for example, can call Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. to find out how the family can best get social housing.

Use residential units in the palace hotel longer?

Since the housing market has hardly any free resources, the city is also renting commercial properties that can be converted, according to Manjura.

This is possible, for example, in office space with good spatial separation and sanitary facilities.

In addition, the city is postponing certain construction projects.

“One construction phase is still missing in the Schönau settlement.

We should actually demolish an old building there.

We are considering postponing that, because then we could use 30 apartments there for about a year and a half," he said.

This also applies to the Palace Hotel building opposite the Hessian State Chancellery, in which the occupancy of the around 85 social housing units was prematurely released in order to be able to start the renovation.

The work should actually start in 2024, when the last tenants have moved out.

"The big question is: will the current emergency situation lead to the residential units in the palace hotel being used longer and the renovation being postponed," explained Manjura, because the building belongs to the municipal real estate subsidiary GWG.

The city is currently examining whether they are officially signing the contracts for the refugees as tenants, or whether the refugees themselves are acting as tenants.

If the city is a tenant, the leases could be terminated more quickly and easily in a few years if the building were then renovated.