Sluggish rededication

After a dispute, land is offered at a knockdown price

In Ostermiething, land dedications are a topic of discussion.(Bild: Pressefoto Scharinger © Daniel Scharinger)

Surprising turnaround in Ostermiething. A field could now be built on after all. As reported, a Hallein real estate company bought around 9000 square meters of grassland, but the municipality does not want to reclassify it. It is now offering the land for around 150 euros per square meter. The market value is twice as high. 

The rezoning of around 9,000 square meters of grassland into building land has been on hold in Ostermiething for years. As reported, ÖVP long-time mayor Gerhard Holzner is said to have initially held out the prospect of dedicating the land to a real estate agent from Hallein, but then repeatedly put him off.

Rededication only in the case of a gift to the municipality
In other cases, he is said to have given preference to people from the family circle, who are believed to have acquired around 28,000 square meters and resold some of them for a large profit. The head of the village, however, argues that there were no family ties when the purchase contract was concluded and that these only arose later when his daughter got married. There is no question that everything went smoothly from a legal point of view

Back to the field that has been undeveloped for years: as reported, the mayor only offered the real estate agent the prospect of dedication if he donated half of the land to the municipality. The latter would have borne all the costs for the construction of the necessary infrastructure.

The man from Hallein turned it down, but now agreed to a proposal from the Braunau SP district organization. He would sell the land to the Ostermiething residents at a knockdown price of 150 euros per square meter. The market value is around 330 euros.

An offer has now been made that could relieve the pressure on house builders who have been hit hard by rising prices.

Andreas Peterlechner, SP-Bezirksgeschäftsführer

 "There could be 15 affordable building plots. I recommend that the municipality accepts this offer and initiates the zoning process quickly, because it is also a matter of fairness. The conditions must be the same for all applicants for land dedication," says SP district manager and National Council candidate Andreas Peterlechner. According to him, a construction company that would also like to dedicate large areas would also participate in the "local model".

Mayor examines offer
Head of the village Holzner: "I am surprised at this turn of events. It was always about such a 'local model'. In principle, it is a good thing when affordable building plots are created for locals. We examine every proposal. If it's not a sham, which I don't expect, the local council will deal with it."