Dispute over Kelkheimer building area: perhaps a case for lawyers

Opposition to development plans is nothing exotic.

Actually everywhere where new buildings are planned, there is protest, mostly from residents who would rather look out of their window at a field or meadow than at the neighboring houses.

The case is somewhat different in the dispute over the “Vor dem Schlämmer” development area in Kelkheim.

There, the conflict revolves around a meadow orchard that occupies part of the construction area.

A meadow with fruit trees is not a primeval forest, but a cultural landscape, a human work.

Nevertheless, a meadow orchard is considered valuable because small creatures live there for which there is no other habitat.

The dispute over the Kelkheimer building area is reminiscent of a similar case in Hofheim.

The local building area "Vorderheide" is also to be built on meadow orchards, which is the subject of a tough legal dispute.

The highest Hessian administrative judges have agreed with the nature conservationists and banned the planned development.

The mayor of Kelkheim, Albrecht Kündiger, must have thought of that when he suggested removing the meadow orchard from the planning area.

Otherwise "hurdles" due to nature conservation could prevent construction soon.

The mayor is certainly right about that.

In his city, the critics of the construction plans are not taking the legal route, but the political route.

They want to ensure that Kelkheimers are allowed to vote on whether they want the construction area or not.

And in a second respect the Kelkheimer is reminiscent of the Hofheim case.

In both cities, the head of the town hall does not have a majority behind him.

In Hofheim, the mayor is supported by a coalition that does not have a majority.

In Kelkheim, the official, who belongs to an ecologically oriented group of voters, faces a coalition led by the CDU.

This means that in Kelkheim those who want houses instead of fruit trees have the majority.

However, the final decision does not lie with them when it comes to a vote of the citizens.

It may well be that, as in Hofheim, the lawyers will have the last word.

The chances for early construction work on the meadow orchard are not good.