As of: February 2, 2024, 6:30 a.m
By: Christina Jachert-Maier
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The referendum will decide whether the town hall will be demolished.
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New construction or renovation?
The result of the referendum on Rottach town hall will be known on Sunday evening.
50.81 percent of those eligible to vote had already voted by postal vote on Thursday.
The counting begins after the polling station closes - with demolition opponents as observers.
Rottach-Egern
– The very first Rottach referendum determines the future of the town hall.
The extent to which the question of whether the old building with the striking clock tower should be cleared for demolition or renovated is already becoming apparent.
As of yesterday, 11 a.m., 2,475 of the 4,871 eligible voters had already cast their vote by post.
Participation in the referendum at this time was 50.81 percent.
For comparison: Rottach-Egern usually has a voter turnout of around 60 percent in local elections.
More ballots by letter are expected to arrive at the town hall by the weekend.
On the official date of the referendum on Sunday, February 4th, the polling station in the school will open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
According to community manager Gerhard Hofmann, the preliminary result should be available around 8 p.m.
The result should be known around 8 p.m
A team of 36 counters is at work in order to complete the counting of the four voting districts in just under two hours.
It's about two decisions: the citizens' initiative and the council's initiative.
In addition, a key question must be answered, which comes into play if both requests receive more yes votes than no votes.
So that everything is crystal clear, you should tick three boxes.
The referendum was triggered by the local council's intention to replace the old building with a modern administration building.
The committee made the decision on September 14, 2021.
The new building planning was in full swing when Stefan Berghammer and Marco Zimmermann called for citizen participation in February 2023.
They founded the Rottach-Egern Support and Protection Association (FSG) and have been fighting ever since to preserve the striking clock tower, which they see as the town's landmark.
Citizens' initiative calls for the clock tower to be preserved
Gunther Mair took up the protest as a private citizen and launched a citizens' initiative in September 2023.
It calls for the renovation of the old building.
The basis is a variant rejected by the local council, which was created as part of a feasibility study.
The question in the citizens' petition is: "Are you in favor of choosing the option 'renovation of the existing building with demolition/rebuilding of the rear extension' while preserving the street-facing facade for the redesign of the Rottach-Egern town hall?"
The local council, however, remains united in its course and allows a decision to be made on a council request.
It reads: “Are you in favor of replacing the old town hall with a new, sustainable town hall with an underground car park?”
Initiator hopes for clear results
Mair, as the initiator of the citizens' initiative, hopes that the decision will bring a clear result and not a narrow decision, in whatever direction.
“For me it’s about the democratic process,” he says.
He follows the community's processing of the decision in a relaxed manner.
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There is less trust at FSG.
According to spokesman Stefan Berghammer, the demolition opponents would have been happy to take part in the count with twelve members.
Manager Hofmann refused.
“I trust my tried and tested counting team,” he says.
An experienced team of election workers who are familiar with all processes.
Demolition opponents follow the vote as observers
The FSG contacted the municipal supervisory authority at the district office regarding many details surrounding the handling of the referendum.
Regarding the question of whether the group fears that the vote results will be manipulated, Berghammer says: “The opportunity makes the temptation.”
In consultation with the municipality, the FSG is now using the right to observe the public counting of the referendum as a silent spectator.
Berghammer announces that the group will be represented by eight to ten people in the four counting rooms.
He is satisfied with this agreement: “The presence also has a charisma.”