SP detects skewed optics

Head of town in the crossfire of criticism due to dedications

In Ostermiething, negotiations have been going on for more than three years about land dedications in this settlement.

(Bild: Scharinger Daniel)

The waves are running high in Ostermiething. Both SP provincial manager Florian Koppler and a real estate agent from Hallein have identified a skewed approach to the allocation of land. The ÖVP mayor is said to give preferential treatment to people from the family environment. They are said to benefit more from property deals as a result.

The mayor of Ostermiething, Gerhard Holzner (ÖVP), has been caught in the crossfire of criticism. As reported, he is said to have attached a rather questionable condition to the rezoning of around 9,000 square meters of green space into building land. The owner of the land, a real estate company from Hallein, would have had to donate half of the area to the municipality in order to meet the criteria for rezoning.

It is not unusual for municipalities to agree a "fifty-fifty" model with rezoning applicants, and this is also regulated by law. However, one requirement is a fair selling price for one half; donations are absolutely taboo. And social or subsidizable housing must be built.

Landowner sits on the building committee
The Hallein real estate developer does not rule out the possibility that the municipality does not want the rezoning at all and is therefore making unacceptable demands. The family surrounding the head of the village is said to own around 28,000 square meters of building land worth around six million euros. "No rezoning for me - that could increase the purchase price of their land," says the Hallein resident. The fact that one of the landowners sits on the building committee reinforces the skewed picture.

SP demands full transparency
The SPÖ's regional managing director Florian Koppler also sees this: "The mayor and the ÖVP are now required to disclose what is going on. The public deserves transparency and certainty that no preferential treatment of the mayor's family environment has taken place. Specifically, the provincial supervisory authority must take a close look at the extent to which family members were potentially given preferential treatment in the case of dedications."