Legal dispute over the Rose Hips daycare center: Parents worried!

Legal dispute over the Rose Hips daycare center: Parents worried!

In Hildburghausen, things are bubbling under the surface - the dispute over rent payments for the Rose Hips daycare center is causing unrest not only among those responsible, but also among the families affected. Marked by public disputes and legal skirmishes, the city is waiting for legal clarification of the tenancy agreements, which is currently still pending and is about to be finalized. As inSüdthüringen reports, around 40 children are currently visiting the facility, while the managing director of Awo AJS GmbH, Andreas Krauße, has concerns regarding the increased public pressure caused by rental advertisements before the final legal clarification.

In the background is a complex contractual situation between the city of Hildburghausen and AWO AJS gGmbH. The dispute concerns the recognition of the rental costs for the new crèche, which was launched in 2018 in response to the rapidly growing need for childcare places. At that time it was determined that the need for daycare places far exceeded the existing capacities, which led the city administration to examine a cost framework for its own facility, which was estimated at almost 1.9 million euros. But the project was scrapped when EFM GmbH made an attractive offer to build the crèche on their property and rent it out.

Criticism of the rental negotiations

The city then conducted an expression of interest process in 2018 to find an operator for the daycare center. AWO AJS gGmbH was the only applicant and secured the construction of the crèche before completion for 15 years at a monthly price of 10,500 euros - without operating costs. At this point, the mayor was unable to conclude an operating contract directly because loan-like transactions required the approval of the legal supervisory authority. After extensive legal advice, a contract was ultimately signed between the city and the AWO in which the rental costs were to be clarified in court, reports Die Linke Hildburghausen.

The judicial authorities also asked the city to submit a proposal for a contractual agreement and to determine appropriate rental costs. While the city administration expresses satisfaction with the AWO's work in the facility, it must still ensure that the rental costs do not exceed the maximum limits of comparable facilities, unless special care offers are justified. The AWO is currently offered an annual amount of 34,285 euros (2,857 euros per month), which the city considers to be justifiable. However, the difference to the required rent of 10,500 euros per month is over 1.3 million euros - a sum that is urgently needed for the renovation of the Werner Bergmann Stadium.

In this context, the mayor emphasized that he was never interested in cultivating personal enmities, as recent allegations made by Michael Meinel, the project manager at EFM GmbH, suggest. Instead, the focus is on responsible management of tax resources. While the legal situation is still deteriorating and parents are worried about the future of the daycare center, it remains to be hoped that a conclusion will be reached soon in order to eliminate the uncertainties and continue the valuable work in the Rosehips daycare center.