Hello Leipzig: Here’s how Thursday 22 October 2026 gets off to a start

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Hello Leipzig: This is how Thursday, 22 October 2026 begins.

What can’t a day do that an office can? Keep quiet! An office stays closed, but a trade fair celebrates the start with lights and quirkiness. It’s going to be a tight squeeze at Schkeuditzer Kreutz today; instead, an expert talk will offer helpful tips on dealing with online hate – certainly useful for everyday life.

Citizen services paralysed

The ‘Gohlis-Center’ citizens’ office (Elsbethstraße) must remain closed for considerably longer than initially announced following a breakdown. According to the latest information from the City of Leipzig, operations are not expected to resume before 6 November. Originally, the city administration had only announced that it would be closed until Wednesday, 21 October.

No further details are currently available regarding the cause and extent of the breakdown, or its potential impact on appointments that have already been made. Residents can use other citizen service centres run by the City of Leipzig for most administrative matters. This includes, for example, registration matters and applications for identity cards and passports. Information on which offices provide the relevant services can be found on the city’s website at www.leipzig.de.

Digital procedures are also available for certain services, meaning that a personal visit is not always necessary. For example, basic and extended certificates of residence can be applied for via the city’s online form at https://formulare.leipzig.de/frontend-server/form/provide/1613/

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According to the city, the processing time is around one week for electronic submissions and around two weeks for postal submissions. An online form is also available at https://formulare.leipzig.de/frontend-server/form/provide/1511/?lang=de

for deregistering your residence when moving abroad.

For enquiries regarding the availability of other locations, booking appointments and existing appointments, the Citizens’ Helpline is available on 0341 115, Monday to Friday from 7.30 am to 6 pm.

GRASSI celebrates the start of the fair

With an extensive awards ceremony, a preview tour and the premiere of a light art installation, the GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts is opening the GRASSIMESSE 2026 today at 6 pm. No fewer than eight prizes will be awarded for outstanding achievements in contemporary craft and design. According to the museum, the awards are endowed with a total of 15,000 euros and non-cash prizes.

The fair will then open its stands for an initial preview. Around 140 international exhibitors will be presenting their work at some 80 stands. According to the organisers, the public preview is scheduled for 7.00 pm to 9.30 pm. From 7.00 pm to 8.00 pm, a major light show is on the programme: under the title ‘Light in Motion: ALBERS/REDUX’, the Leipzig-based artist duo DOPPELDENK will present new developments in their light art project. The large windows of the museum building will be used as a canvas for the display.

Visitors can best view the show from Johannisplatz in front of the main entrance. These two programme highlights combine the celebration of contemporary design with an artistic presentation of the museum building.

The GRASSIMESSE itself begins on Friday 23 October and runs until Sunday 25 October. It features works from fields including jewellery, ceramics, glass, metal, furniture, textiles and fashion. The opening night at the GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts at Johannisplatz 5–11 is free of charge; no booking is required.

For regular visits to the fair from Friday onwards, adults pay 8 euros and concessions 5.50 euros. Children and young people up to and including the age of 18 are admitted free of charge.

Night-time at the junction

Several night-time traffic measures are coming into effect today on the A9 motorway in the vicinity of the Schkeuditzer Kreuz due to road resurfacing works. From 7 pm until 8 am on Friday, the slip road onto the A9 at the Schkeuditzer Kreuz from the direction of Wiedemar will be closed. The exit from the A14 at the Schkeuditz junction coming from the direction of Schkeuditz is also reported to be closed for the same period. On the A9 between Wiedemar and Großkugel, preparatory work will also begin at 7 pm in the direction of Halle/Leipzig.

From 8.00 pm until 8.00 am on Friday morning, the usable carriageway width will be restricted to 3.75 metres on a 2.48-kilometre stretch between 4.0 kilometres past the Wiedemar junction and 1.2 kilometres before Großkugel. The maximum speed limit there is 80 kilometres per hour. The end date for the entire project at the Schkeuditz junction is given as 30 October. The works affect the most important motorway junction for traffic between Leipzig, Halle, Leipzig/Halle Airport and long-distance interregional traffic.

The federal government’s Autobahn GmbH provides up-to-date traffic information on its official roadworks map HERE ONLINE.

Standing up to online hate

They are the digital scourge of the internet: hate speech and disinformation! What can be done to counter them? An event organised by Frauenkultur Leipzig e. V. at Windscheidstraße 51 today focuses on digital civic courage.

Education officer and analyst Sarah Shiferaw from the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD) will discuss how to recognise hostility and targeted misinformation on the internet, and what options are available to counter them. The talk, followed by a discussion, begins at 6 pm and will explore the impact of digital hate speech on social interaction and the culture of democratic debate.

The discussion will also cover conspiracy theories, the critical evaluation of information found online, and the question of how those affected can be protected. Sarah Shiferaw has more than 15 years’ experience in adult education. Among other things, she will explain what options people have when confronted with hate and disinformation online, and how digital civil courage can be demonstrated without exceeding one’s own limits.

The subsequent discussion will focus on concrete approaches to dealing with hostility, promoting digital media literacy and strengthening democratic values. The event thus focuses both on societal challenges and on practical ways of taking responsibility in everyday digital life. Regarding admission, the official programme states: “At your own discretion”. Visitors can therefore determine their own contribution.