Piding is an approved climatic spa in Bavaria near to the border of Austria close to Bad Reichenhall and Freilassing. Geography Geographical position Piding is located in the middle of the Landkreis Berchtesgadener Land. The municipal area corresponds to a natural expanse: It is bounded by the mountains Hochstaufen (1771 m) and Fuderheuberg (1.350 m) in the South, by the river Saalach in the East and by the hill Högl in the North-West. In the North-East the Saalach shapes the borderline to Salzburg (Austria). Districts and Neighbours The districts are Piding, Kleinhögl, Bichlbruck, Urwies, Mauthausen, Staufenbrücke and Pidingerau. Immediate neighbours are the town Bad Reichenhall and the municipalities Ainring and Anger. History Archaeological troves shows, that the region was already populated in the New Stone Age (about 2800 BC). During the construction of the (former) ski-lift at the Fuderheuberg in 1970 copper bars from the Bronze Age were found. Religions The Catholic parish Maria Geburt (birth of Mary) is responsible for this churches: parish church Maria Geburt (Piding) St. Laurentius (Mauthausen) St. Johannes at Johannishögl (no regular masses) Development of population 1790: 635 inhabitants; 1910: 864; 1946: 1,540; 1985: 3,996; 2000: 5,093; 2002: 5,257. Coat of arms The municipal coat of arms from 1962 refers to the former relations to arch-monastery and chapter Salzburg (black lion's head) and to the Höglwörth Abbey (cross-over silver keys). Politics Municipal council Elections in 2014 CSU: 9 seats Free voters: 6 seats Alliance 90/The Greens: 3 seats SPD: 2 seats Mayor First (governing) mayor is Hannes Holzner (CSU), second mayor Walter Pfannerstill (FWG) and third mayor Dr. Bernhard Zimmer (Grüne). Culture and sights Music/Tradition Club for the preservation of traditional costumes, "D'Staufenecker" Traditional band Buildings Schloss Staufeneck Sport tennis hall, tennis courts hiking trails, cross-country ski runs (tracked) Pidinger Klettersteig (fixed rope route) to the Hochstaufen Football ground Economy and infrastructure Resident Companies Autohaus Bachfrieder (car dealer) Behindertenwerkstätte (workshop for handicapped people) Milchwerke Berchtesgadener Land (dairy) Stahl- und Metallbau Heinz Bender KG (metal constructions) Traffic Next to Piding is the last exit of the motorway A 8 (Munich-Salzburg) in front of the border to Austria. The federal road B 20 (Berchtesgaden-Oberpfalz) is tangent to Piding. Piding has its own railway station on the Freilassing-Berchtesgaden railway line. Education Primary and secondary school Rupertusschule (school for handicapped persons) Characters Honorary citizens Max Wieser: former mayor Literature Max Wieser: Pidinger Heimatbuch, 1250 Jahre Piding - Verlag Plenk,