Minister of the Interior reacts

Police station on Keplerplatz about to close

Daily police patrols on Keplerplatz could soon be history.(Bild: Zwefo)

Almost daily stabbings, attacks on police officers - Innerfavoriten can't rest. On Wednesday, the news that the police station on Keplerplatz would have to close caused a stir. After the "Krone" report, however, the Ministry of the Interior rowed back.  

In recent weeks and months, Innerfavoriten has become the focus of media attention due to several incidents of violence. Initially, not even an increased police presence has changed anything, even if people's subjective feeling of safety has improved as a result, as a "Krone" survey showed shortly after the incidents. 

This makes the following news seem all the more unreal: the police station on Keplerplatz is to close in July, as was announced at a press conference held by the Vienna Freedom Party on Wednesday. The reason is that the police station at Keplergasse 10 is in a dilapidated state and is to be demolished.

The police station in Keplergasse is dilapidated and the building will be demolished at the end of August.(Bild: Gerhard Bartel)

Initially it was said that the police would be housed near the Verteilerkreis until further notice - 15 minutes away from the Keplerplatz hotspot. After that, they were to move into quarters in the immediate vicinity of the current office at Columbusgasse 7. However, some renovation work would still be required there.

Karner puts his foot down: the office will remain
 for the time beingHowever, after an online report in "Krone", things took a turn for the worse. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) rowed back and assured that the Keplergasse police station would remain in operation at its current location for the time being. The new building will only be realized once an adequate replacement location has been found in the immediate vicinity. "People's safety is our top priority," says Karner.

According to the Bundesimmobiliengesellschaft (BIG), the building in Keplerstraße is not in danger of collapsing: "However, it is already getting on in years, which is why renovation or demolition with subsequent new construction is being examined," says a spokesperson.