Building mayor moves to the head of the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning
Appointment of Petra Wesseler as new BBR President confirmed by the Federal Cabinet
On Wednesday, the Federal Cabinet approved the appointment of Petra Wesseler as the new President of the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR) at the suggestion of Federal Building Minister Barbara Hendricks. The current Head of Building and Mayor of Chemnitz will take up her new post in February 2015.
"I would like to thank Petra Wesseler warmly for her more than ten years of work in Chemnitz," says Mayor Barbara Ludwig. "She is an expert in the field of architecture, urban and spatial planning and has experience in competitions and jury procedures. She has also managed processes such as the Economic Stimulus Programme II, the results of which can be seen in many places in Chemnitz. I wish Petra Wesseler all the best for the future."
"The decision to move was not an easy one," says Petra Wesseler. "But this opportunity to help shape things at federal level and to be able to utilise my very practical experience in urban development is unique. I am looking forward to the new challenge, but I will always remain connected to Chemnitz."
Petra Wesseler studied architecture in Braunschweig and Stuttgart. After training for the higher civil engineering administrative service, she worked in various roles at the Federal Building Directorate - now the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning - from 1993. From 1995, she was Head of Division there, responsible in particular for the Federal Foreign Office and other federal buildings in Berlin. Born in Westphalia, she has been Mayor of Chemnitz since 2002 and heads the Department of Urban Development, Environment and Construction. Petra Wesseler is a member of the Building and Transport Committee of the German Association of Cities and Towns and of the Building, Environment and Transport Committee of the Saxon Association of Cities, Towns and Municipalities.
The Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning is a higher federal authority within the portfolio of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB). With over 1,200 employees at its offices in Berlin and Bonn, the BBR is responsible for federal buildings in Germany and abroad and supports the federal government by providing technical and scientific advice in the policy areas of spatial planning, urban development, housing and construction.