Cologne's building gap: Hotelbau until 2031 - dispute over the property climax!

Cologne's building gap: Hotelbau until 2031 - dispute over the property climax!

Richard-Wagner-Straße 6, 50674 Köln, Deutschland - Cologne's notorious building gap at Richard-Wagner-Straße 6 causes a stir again. Here, an investor is planning to build a hotel until the end of 2031. This reports ksta.de . The location is only 300 meters away from the Rudolfplatz and was long seen as a problem child for the city. The history of this building gap is characterized by conflicts and a high financial burden for the owners.

In 2022, the former owner Eberhard Stöppke died, who was already taken for his inactivity with a penalty of 1.8 million euros. Stöppkes heirs now continue to pay a monthly penalty of 10,000 euros, which she should apparently stimulate action. The city administration has informed the property committee that the sales process of the property should be promoted, while the heirs are already preparing to build themselves, should not come about.

decision pressure increases

On June 16, the property committee will discuss the conditions that the city negotiated with the heirs for the first time. These conditions include an expansion of the construction obligation to all three properties on Richard-Wagner-Straße. The city would like to ensure that comprehensive use of the inner city area and not just a single hotel is being developed.

The planned hotel is said to include seven floors and even offer space for 37 parking spaces in an underground car park. In order to reduce the pressure on the heirs, a suspension of the high punishment is currently being discussed by the end of 2031. According to this, a maximum of 600,000 euros should be agreed for a period of five years, in addition the heirs must pay 540,000 euros to the city to cover the increased use of the property.

The history of the building gap

Eberhard Stöppke, a former police officer, had drawn attention to himself with legal disputes and emotional protests against the city administration. He accused the city of preventing him in his endeavor to fulfill the construction obligation and exposed this on websites and with posters in his parking space at Richard-Wagner-Straße 10. These arguments testify to deep dissatisfaction and a feeling of fainting towards the city administration.

District representative Michael Scheffer expressed the left hopes that the new building state mobilization law will be effectively complied with. The situation in Cologne is tense, the shortage of housing is described as catastrophic, which is why any improvement on this area would be of great importance. District Mayor Hupke also shows interest in creating a student dormitory on the site, but is in the uncertain situation how such a project could be realized.

Change of the city

The construction hundred on Richard-Wagner-Straße is only a small part of a larger construction boom in Cologne, which will fundamentally change the city. In the coming years, several major projects will be planned, including the north-south city railway, which promises a faster connection from the districts to the city center, as well as the redesign of the Deutz harbor.

Overall, Cologne shows herself in an exciting path towards a modern city with diverse residential and job opportunities. But first, the history of the building gap here on Richard-Wagner-Straße should come to a positive end. The pressure on the decision -makers is high, because the time for a solution is pushing.