Dhe old stamp factory in Frankfurt's Sachsenhausen district is particularly popular with architects. Several well-known architectural firms have their headquarters there, and the library of the German Architecture Museum is on the ground floor. One would think that not a bad neighborhood for the city's building department, which also includes the education department and thus the public school buildings. At the entrance portal of the office building on Hedderichstrasse, two large information boards show the way. Next to a red city coat of arms is written “City of Frankfurt am Main. Department for Education, Real Estate and New Building”.
But the visitor who wants to take the elevator to the department to the fourth floor doesn't get there. The elevator stops on the third floor. It doesn't go any further. Back on the ground floor, we happen to meet a man in front of the caretaker's office. The education department? “They’re not here yet. There’s no desk there yet.” He doesn’t want to give any further information.
It is possible that no department employee will ever sit there. Because its move is highly controversial in the magistrate and city administration. Head of Education Sylvia Weber (SPD) signed a rental agreement in December 2022. But the Audit Office and the Legal Office have expressed concerns. The space is oversized and too expensive, and renting it is uneconomical. There is also enough space in municipal buildings, such as the Office for Building and Real Estate on Solmsstrasse. The magistrate has therefore not yet approved the move. And the landlord is waiting for his rent.
The magistrate has not yet approved the tenancy agreement
The building belongs to the Luxembourg company Lion Investments. The tenancy should begin on December 15, 2022. A price per square meter of 16.70 euros was agreed for the 1,230 square meter area. There are also additional costs, storage rooms and parking spaces. This all adds up to a monthly rent of 24,671 euros. But the city hasn't transferred a cent so far. The first reminder came in March, by which time rent debts of 86,351 euros had accrued. The city now probably owes around 350,000 euros.
But has the treaty actually come into force? At least Weber signed it. However, she is of the opinion that this was done under the condition that the city committees approved the contract. “Both the landlord and I assumed that we would get a decision within two to three months. And in this respect, from my point of view, it was not critical to sign the contract subject to the approval of the magistrate,” she says.
However, the magistrate has not yet approved the agreement – citing the control offices' unresolved concerns. The city council did not agree either. This is not formally necessary, as only rental agreements with a term of at least ten years require your approval.
The lease for the stamp factory runs for five years with the option of a four-year extension. That makes a total of nine. Should the city council be bypassed? The legal office recommends that they also be involved in order to counteract this impression.
Landlord sees “internal discrepancies” within the city
From the landlord's perspective, the tenancy agreement was concluded legally. Confident that everything was correct, he divided the rooms according to the tenant's needs and even put up signs. The architect Jachen Könz represents the landlord. “The space was rented. There is a contract,” he says, referring to “internal disagreements” at the city. You stand “in the middle of the discussion” to solve the problem. “We are having lawyers pursue how this knot can be solved.”
The education department is currently housed in two buildings: Weber and some employees are located at Mainzer Landstrasse 293, the “Stadtraum Frankfurt” administration building in Gallus. However, these areas are claimed by Weber's colleague Nargess Eskandari-Grünberg (The Greens) for advising refugees. Part of the department, including the school construction department, is located at Solmsstrasse 27-37, the Office for Construction and Real Estate. There are almost 30 more rooms available there. But it was agreed that these rooms would be reserved for new employees, says Weber. The office is preparing 80 appointments, 30 of which are already in the application process. “If you hire people, you also need a place to work for them.”
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