Flensburg's riding facility: forced eviction instead of equestrian - nature in focus!

The urban riding facility on Osterallee in Flensburg faces fundamental changes. The lease agreement with the riding and driving club, which has been operating the facility since 1976, was terminated in 2017. A judicial discussion ended a few weeks ago with a compulsory evacuation, which resulted in the return of the area to the city of Flensburg, such as foerde.news reported.

City spokesman Clemens Teschendorf said that concept allocation to restore the riding facility was not possible. The reason for this are the static problems of the existing buildings and numerous black buildings. The city has also checked alternative uses, such as the construction of a new equestrian system. However, there were obstacles, including the proximity to an FFH protection area and nature conservation law concerns. In addition, there is a lack of sufficient grazing ground and the building ground is badly assessed.

planning of the renaturation

As a result, the city decided to give up the concept of concept and to cancel potential interested parties in an equestrian use. Instead, a renaturation of the site is planned. After the renovation of the existing building, the area is to be restored to the area. The city warns of the dangers of the dilapidated buildings and has banned entering the site due to the risk of collapse. The renaturation is intended to set a sign of the protection of nature and the environment and mark the end of a chapter in the history of Osterallee.

On November 14, 2024, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) decided in parallel to these developments that Germany violated Art. 6 Para. 2 of the FFH Directive. Germany failed to take suitable measures to avoid the deterioration of the habitat types 6510 (meager flat land mowing meadows) and 6520 (mountain mowing meadows), such as baumann-rechtsanwaelte.de reported.

This decision was followed by a violation of the European Commission, which was based on complaints from environmental associations, in particular NABU e.V. The mowing meadows were found in many regions of Germany. The Court of Justice also criticized the surveillance regime in Germany as inadequate and not specific enough, which indicates structural failures in nature conservation and emphasizes an urgent need for action for the legislator and the administrations in order to improve the protection of biodiversity.