Sankt Johann in Tirol
Sunday, August 31st, 2008| St. Johann in Tirol | |
| Coat of arms | Location |
|
 |
| Administration | |
| Country |  Austria |
|---|---|
| State | Tyrol |
| District | Kitzbühel (KB) |
| Mayor | Josef Grander (ÖVP) |
| Basic statistics | |
| Area | 59.15 km² (22.8 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 660 m (2165 ft) |
| Population | 8,606 (31/12/2007) |
| - Density | 145 /km² (377 /sq mi) |
| Other information | |
| Time zone | CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) |
| Licence plate | KB |
| Postal code | 6380 |
| Area codes | +43 5352 |
| Website | www.st.johann.net
Coordinates: |
Johann in Tirol 1740″ src=”http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Ortsansicht_1750_AT6380.JPG/280px-Ortsansicht_1750_AT6380.JPG” width=”280″ height=”163″ border=”0″ class=”thumbimage” />
St. Johann in Tirol 1740
St. Johann in Tirol is a market town in Tyrol, Austria, in the Kitzbühel district.
Contents
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Geography
Location
St. Johann lies in a valley basin between the mountain range of the “Wilder Kaiser” and the “Kitzbüheler Horn” in the centre of the district of Kitzbühel. The Kitzbühler Ache (small river), the Fieberbrunner Ache and the Reither Ache unite in St. Johann and run into Bavaria as the Tiroler Ache. The center of town is approximately 660 metres above sea level, the Local Authority area comprises a surface area of 59,150 square metres.
Subsidiary Hamlets
St. Johann consists of: Almdorf, Apfeldorf, Bärnstetten, Berglehen, Fricking, Hinterkaiser, Mitterndorf, Niederhofen, Oberhofen, Reitham, Rettenbach, Scheffau, Sperten, Taxa, Weiberndorf, Weitau, Winkl Schattseite, Winkl Sonnseite
Neighbouring Communities
Fieberbrunn, Going am Wilden Kaiser, Kirchdorf in Tirol, Kitzbühel, Oberndorf in Tirol, St. Ulrich am Pillersee
History
St. Johann is situated in the Leukental, which extends from Jochberg to the Streichen close to the Bavarian border. This region was already settled in the 4th century BC by a Celtic tribe, the Ambisontiers, who pursued copper mining in the surrounding mountains.
In the 8th century (probably before 738), the missionaries built a Catholic church in the region of St. Johann, which was dedicated to John the Baptist and who gave St. Johann its name. The church “St. Johannes” was first mentioned in a document in the year 1150.
In 1446, the bishops of Chiemsee were given the responsibility of the parish of St. Johann, from which time onwards it became their summer residence.
The opening of the copper and silver mines in 1540 increased the wealth of St. Johann. The mines were located in the small hills, known as Rerobichl close to Oberndorf, which belonged to St. Johann. In the 17th century the “Heilig-Geist-Schacht” (Holy Ghost Shaft) was the deepest shaft in the world, over 780 metres deep.
The mining of copper and silver continued until the 18th century. In 1875 St. Johann was connected to the international railway network. The consequence was that the economy increased. And in addition to that tourism was also just starting. In 1927 Oberndorf and St. Johann split and from this time onwards Oberndorf was separate.
In 1954, St. Johann received its own Coat of Arms; in 1956, St. Johann reached the elevated status of a market town.
Economy and infrastructure
Transportation
St. Johann is a major traffic junction, to which the following roads are connected: B 178 - Loferer Straße; B 164 - Hochkönig Straße; B 176 - Kössener Straße; B 161 - Pass Thurn Straße. European route E641, which connects Wörgl with Salzburg, passes through St. Johann in Tirol, intersecting here with highway B161 to Mittersill.
The market town also has an express train station on the route of the Giselabahn, which is also called the Salzburg-Tiroler-Bahn and has access to the international rail network to Salzburg, Innsbruck and to Munich via Wörgl.
In addition there is an airport for light aircraft and gliders, airfield (ICAO Code LOIJ), used by light aircraft, parachutists and gliders (runway length 645m, radio frequency 120,350 MHz, , 670 m altitude). It is the second largest airport in Tyrol.
The distance between St. Johann and Salzburg is 65 km, between St. Johann and Innsbruck 100 km and between St. Johann and Munich 125 km.
Panorama of St. Johann in Tirol. (Winter)-(Spring)
Economy
Tourism and the hospitality trade are the most important branches of industry in the area. With approximately 520,000 overnight stays per year, St. Johann belongs to the main tourism regions in Tyrol. There is a great variety of hotels, camping sites, restaurants and discotheques. In the last decades, St. Johann witnessed an economic boom in trade, service and industry. St. Johann is now the shopping centre of the district of Kitzbühel. Especially along the B 178, there are now many new firms, which profit from the good location. In addition, the opening of the pedestrian zone has improved the town centre since the 1990s, so that the average number of people that use the infrastructure daily is 20,000.
Many companies are situated in St. Johann, such as the headquarters of the firm Fritz Egger GmbH & Co, which is one of the most well known chip board manufacturers in Europe. Agriculture also plays an important role in the valley of St. Johann, and the farms in the area still enjoy great significance.
St. Johann in Tirol is an important tourist centre with impressive ski-slopes and related facilities. It is also popular in summer, especially with British, Irish and German tourists. Located near the Wilder Kaiser (Mad King) mountain, the Kitzbuhler Horn mountain dominates the town. It is well served by ski lifts and cable car.
Public Services
In St. Johann there are some important public services, like the district hospital, the Wintersteller army barracks and the Military Supply Centre West for the Armed Forces based in the west of Austria.
Additionally you can find the following institutions in St. Johann: the District Forest Inspector, the District Administration for Agriculture, the Road Maintenance Department, the nursing home in St. Johann, the health and social care service and the police department.
Education
text translated by the Vocational English group of the local Grammar School, the BG/BORG
- 1 Grammar School
- 1 Institution of Higher Education for Tourism
- 1 Agricultural School
- 1 Music School
- 1 Polytechnic Institute
- 2 Secondary Schools
- 2 Elementary Schools
- 1 Special Needs Educational Centre
- 1 Montessori School
- 1 Adult Education Centre
- 4 Kindergartens
- 2 Nursery Schools
Culture and sights
Museums
In St. Johann there is a museum of local history. In this building you can also find the local gallery. In addition, there is an alpine museum (Oberhofenweg).
Sights
- parish church
- the Antonius chapel
- the St. Nikolaus church in Weitau
- town centre
Sports
There are many facilities for inhabitants and guests to practise sports:
- Indoor and outdoor swimming pool with sauna and steam bath
- Tennis courts indoor - outdoor
- Crazy golf
- Mountainbike routes
- Cycle and walking paths
- Archery, low calibre rifle shooting range, pistol shooting range, air gun shooting range
- Circuit training exercise path
- Football stadium (“Koasastadion”)
- Summer toboggan run
- Riding hall, bridal way, trotting course
- Kayaking and rafting
- 60 km of ski runs, 28 km of these with artificial snow making facilities; gondola, chairlift, draglifts and baby lifts
- Cross country circuit
- Ski jumping facilities
Timetrial-MastersWM
Annual events
Since 2004 St. Johann has a modern event hall : the Kaisersaal. The term is derived from the mountain chain “Der Wilde Kaiser”. There are many events such as lectures, corporate events and pop or rock concerts in this hall.
- Koasalauf - one of the biggest cross-country races held in January
- summer night festival “Jaggasn” held in July
- UCI cycling race of the seniors held in August
- a festival celebrating dumplings held in September
Politics
Local Council
The Local Council consists of 19 members; the Mayor is Josef Grander.
The Local Council consists of (2004):
- (ÖVP) St. Johanner Volkspartei: 9 mandates
- (JU-ST) Junge St. Johanner: 4 mandates
- (SPÖ) SPÖ – St. Johann in Tirol: 3 mandates
- (Grüne) Die Grünen und Unabhängigen: 3 mandates
Local councillors
There are seven Local Councillors. The Mayor is voted by the population and the two Vice Mayors are voted by the Local Councillors.
- Mayor Josef Grander, (ÖVP)
- 1st Vice Mayor Dr. Georg Zimmermann, (ÖVP)
- 2nd Vice Mayor Hans Peter Springinsfeld, (JU-ST)
- Local Councillor Renate Kammerlander, (ÖVP)
- Local Councillor Simon Aschaber, (ÖVP)
- Local Councillor Johann Grander, (SPÖ)
- Local Councillor Siegfried Pürstl, (Grüne)
View of St. Johann in Tirol from the Harschbichl (1604 m); Tirol; Austria
Twin towns
St. Johann in Tirol is twinned with
Redford, United States
Fuldabrück, Germany
Rovaniemi, Finland
Valeggio sul Mincio, Italy
Demography
The population is constantly increasing. Growth increase of 1.8 per cent, 8,342 inhabitants - 1st January 2005 census.
People
- Edmund Angerer (b. May 24, 1740 in St. Johann in Tirol; d. 1774 in Fiecht), composer of a children’s symphony
- Emma Hellenstainer (b. April 23, 1817 in St. Johann in Tirol; d. March 9, 1904 in Meran), pioneer of Tyrolean catering trade
- Willi Gantschnigg, former world record holder in ski jumping
- Carlos Kammerlander (b. October 6, 1989), Austrian second place athlete in Nordic combination sport
- DJ Ötzi (real name: Gerhard Friedle, b. January 7, 1971 in St. Johann in Tirol), Austrian singer and entertainer
Memberships
Member of the climate alliance since July 1997.
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