FDP Norderney: Chris, please introduce yourself briefly.

Chris Volkamer: My name is Chris Volkamer. I live with my family on Norderney, am married, and a father of two children. Professionally, I work as a Senior Project and Asset Manager for a Hamburg-based financial company. My wife runs the family accommodation business on the island, and I am happy to support her. This combination shapes my view of Norderney: I know the practical challenges of a local family business and, at the same time, deal daily with numbers, risks, economic developments, and long-term viability.

Furthermore, I am a member of the FDP Norderney local chapter and actively participate there. It is important to me to work constructively on solutions together as a team. So, it's not just about expressing one's opinion, but about actively contributing and taking responsibility for the future of our island.

FDP Norderney: Your focus is on economy and finance. Why is this topic so important to you?

Chris Volkamer: Because solid finances are the foundation for much of what we want to achieve politically. Good infrastructure, medical care – such as the hospital and the MVZ, housing, family-friendliness, associations, volunteer work, and a vibrant community – all of this certainly requires a sustainable economic foundation. Norderney has enormous opportunities and already utilizes some of them well. Nevertheless, I have the impression that certain issues are more administered than actively shaped. Here, I would like to see a clearer economic compass.

We need clear goals, meaningful figures, and a policy that not only recognizes economic interdependencies but can also carry them into the future. The impression arises that major decisions are formulated in administrative templates, but from my perspective, a critical analysis and a transparent political dialogue are necessary for successful implementation.

FDP Norderney: You speak of a different political style. What do you mean by that?

Chris Volkamer: I believe that a purely cameralistic mindset does not meet the demands of some decisions. That is, thinking along the lines of: We see what is currently possible and feasible in the budget, and we exhaust it from fiscal year to fiscal year. Norderney deserves more than mere budget administration at this point. Norderney needs strategic financial policy.

What I view critically is the impression of too close, well-rehearsed coordination between the political majority and the administration. If political decisions are made too much from an administrative perspective and the majority group merely accompanies them, then the necessary distance is lacking. Essentially, politics must set the goals, formulate priorities, monitor implementation, and ultimately control the administration – not the other way around.

FDP Norderney: What specifically needs to change?

Chris Volkamer: Short-term budget thinking is right and important for the island in many areas. Nevertheless, for major decisions affecting many aspects of island life, long-term plans must be drawn up, sensitivities analyzed, and various scenarios for future development considered. For every major project, clear questions must therefore be asked:

What is our goal?
What does it really cost?
What follow-up costs arise?
Which levers are the potential cost drivers?
What risks does the city bear?
What revenues, burdens, or opportunities are realistic?
And what alternatives are being considered?

This requires a focus on economic interdependencies in politics to analyze financial possibilities, subsequently evaluate them, and, if necessary, ask uncomfortable questions.

FDP Norderney: Where is this need for action particularly evident?

Chris Volkamer: Very clearly in the large areas and projects on the island – for example, the area around the former Haus der Insel, the Booken site, or the area of the former open-air swimming pool. These are areas with great potential for Norderney. Future projects could emerge there: for infrastructure, quality of stay, economy, encounters, perhaps even new living or usage concepts.

Such projects are welcome to start with good ideas. However, they need clear political goals and a solid economic concept. First, politics must state what Norderney truly needs. After that, an assessment of economic viability and financial feasibility follows. From my professional experience, I know how an initial concept must adapt to such parameters, or rather, mature into implementability through ongoing changes to the economically viable concept.

FDP Norderney: What role does your professional experience play in this?

Chris Volkamer: As a project developer and asset manager of financial products, typically investment properties for institutional investors, I am used to soberly analyzing risks, opportunities, and long-term developments. The analysis is followed by intensive discussions with all involved partners until a solid basis for the realization of the project is created. It is important that decisions must be based on facts, not on initially well-intentioned wishful thinking. Otherwise, disappointment can quickly become very great.

At the same time, I see the family accommodation business that my wife runs. So I also know very practically what bureaucracy, investments, cost increases, personnel issues, and economic uncertainty mean. I want to bring these two perspectives into local politics: the professional view of numbers and risks – and the down-to-earth view of a family business on our island.

FDP Norderney: You also mentioned the hospital and the MVZ. Why?

Chris Volkamer: Because medical care is of central importance for Norderney. The hospital and MVZ are important facilities. But precisely for this reason, we must speak honestly about their economic foundation. It is not enough to just say: This is important, so let's do it. We need to know: What needs to be achieved? How are the costs to be assessed? What subsidies are needed? What risks arise for the city? Are there alternatives on the table that should perhaps be included in the discussion? The goal is clear: to secure care on our island in the long term and to offer the people who work daily in the hospital and MVZ an appreciative and reliable perspective on the island.

Transparency does not jeopardize care. On the contrary: transparency is the prerequisite for care to be sustainable and for us to find a good solution.

FDP Norderney: Are you questioning such facilities with that?

Chris Volkamer: No. Not at all. On the contrary, I see the hospital and the MVZ as two essential elements for our island community. And precisely for this reason, work must be done on a long-term solution and financial viability.

If structures are to endure, they either need a sustainable economic model or an open political decision about what subsidies are necessary and who pays for them. So, for me, it's not about merely managing the current state. It's about clarity, creating a sustainable concept, and ultimately about planning security for people – both for those who work in the healthcare system and for those who depend on it.

FDP Norderney: Many also know you from club life; how does this come about?

Chris Volkamer: Yes, I was very happy to be involved in TuS Norderney. For me, club life is a very important component, from which our children and young people particularly benefit. So, I know from my own experience how important clubs, volunteer work, and social cohesion are for our island. Precisely for this reason, we need solid finances. A city that remains economically capable of acting can also better support clubs, families, youth, sports, and social life.

FDP Norderney: Why are you involved in the FDP?

Chris Volkamer: I have been a member of the FDP Norderney local chapter for six years and actively participate there because I am convinced that liberal politics is needed on our island. For me, solid finances, transparency, personal responsibility, and economic reason are central. Norderney does not need a policy of rubber-stamping and administration. Norderney needs clear goals on a clear economic foundation. For me, the FDP is the right place to bring these issues forward – professionally, constructively, and with a forward-looking perspective.

FDP Norderney: What is your political goal for Norderney?

Chris Volkamer: I want to help Norderney shape its future more actively. We must not just react and administer. We must act proactively. This includes clear goals, economic reason, and a policy that enables itself to critically accompany major projects. Norderney has huge potential. But this potential needs a solid foundation and structure. If courage and personal responsibility are then added, the best conditions for our island will be created.