The political mud battle in Hallein (Salzburg) never ends! The ÖVP turns to the judiciary for a controversial land purchase. The red mayor goes on the attack.
Politically, Sebastian Kurz and Hallein’s city manager, Alexander Stangassinger, are worlds apart. And yet the SPÖ mayor’s latest move is reminiscent of the former chancellor’s method. As is known, he wants to prove his innocence in the chat affair with a recorded telephone conversation. Stangassinger played a tape at the community representatives meeting on Thursday — seeking to refute serious allegations.
What can be heard on the recording?
Stangassinger explains the processes surrounding a controversial land sale to community representatives in an earlier meeting. The ÖVP had previously informed him via “Krone” that he had never been informed about it.
As a reminder, the municipality sold the 3,360 square meter area on the Dürrnberg to the Kurhotel St. Josef in 2007 – including a contractually agreed take-back. The municipality decided to buy it back in the spring of this year. The hotel owners simply turned their backs and sold the property themselves. The area is now owned by Hallinum GmbH, headed by SPÖ MP Roland Meisl. He acquired the area for 750,000 euros. An appraisal by the municipality estimates the value of the property to be higher. The City of Hallein received a contractually agreed fee of EUR 200,000 from the operator.
An absurdity for the ÖVP. Vice Mayor Katharina Seywald announced that she would turn against the prosecutor. She accuses the mayor of abuse of office. This in turn promptly threatened his opponent on the conversation with the lawyer. The community representatives then gave a majority of their consent to the sale.
Source: Krone
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