Proposed Submission from the Commission for a Directive Safeguarding Animal Welfare and Environmental Preservation.
In the summer of 2022, a land purchase on Hollerweg in Keilberg, totaling 2.3 hectares, caused quite a stir in Regensburg. The Real Estate Office initially believed the land to be an agriculturally used meadow, and a risk assessment assumed it would likely be buildable with a high probability. However, it was later discovered that almost nothing could be built on the purchased land due to the presence of sand-poor grassland, an ecologically valuable but economically nearly worthless biotope.
The purchase price was lower than the rumored 350 euros per square meter, but still higher than the then-current land value of 300 euros per square meter. The purchase contract did not contain a rescission clause, and there is no possibility of rescinding the purchase.
The Environmental Office was given internal hints about the outdated habitat mapping, but the consequences were not taken. This oversight has led to questions about why the sand-poor grassland was not found during the mapping in 2008.
The land was acquired for residential construction purposes, and the initial plans called for housing for 400 people. However, due to the unbuildable land, the prognosis is that instead of housing for 400 people, it will be "only" 360 or 320.
The seller received approximately 30 hectares of agricultural land in the district plus an additional cash payment, with the countervalue being at least six million euros. The Liegenschaftsamt is working to make the considerations for a purchase decision more transparent in the future.
CSU faction leader Michael Lehner has criticized the situation, suggesting that a private investor would have faced bankruptcy. Doris Ebenhoch, head of the responsible main department, explained the deletion of a verbal intervention from a council meeting as an attempt to place the topic in the public eye and promised clearer indications in the future.
Benedikt Suttner (ÖDP) expressed his "respect" for the analysis of events, but pointed out that his party's application to map and evaluate biotopes was rejected. Christian Janele, a CSB councilor, has also faced controversy due to the deletion of his verbal intervention from a council meeting recording.
As the situation unfolds, it is clear that the Regensburg Liegenschaftsamt is taking steps to address the issues that led to this controversial land purchase. For precise, up-to-date information about the procedural changes, it would be necessary to consult official Regensburg city releases, local government announcements, or news sources covering administrative reforms following this event.
- Given the controversial land purchase on Hollerweg in Keilberg, there has been a call for increased transparency in environmental science, particularly when it comes to mapping and evaluating biotopes, as seen in the rejection of Benedikt Suttner's (ÖDP) application.
- The Regensburg City Council's handling of the sand-poor grassland biotope's omission in the 2008 habitat mapping has sparked debate, with CSU faction leader Michael Lehner suggesting that a private investor might have faced bankruptcy under similar circumstances.
- Amidst the backdrop of this land dispute, it has become essential to reconsider the lifestyle choices that prioritize home-and-garden development over the protection of environmental-science treasures like the sand-poor grassland, which, economically, is nearly worthless but ecologically, holds significant value.
