The municipalities have to take care of the accommodation of refugees. The city of Lörrach has a residential complex in mind and is therefore giving notice to the previous tenants. The decision sparked controversy.
The city of Lörrach uses an unusual means to accommodate refugees. Around 40 tenants are to move out of a residential complex so that refugees can move in there. 30 apartments are affected.
As the municipality announced together with the municipal subsidiary Wohnbau Lörrach, this measure can free up living space for around 100 refugees. “The tenants will be promptly offered more modern and affordable housing according to their personal situation,” it said.
According to the information, the buildings are apartments from the 1950s. In any case, it was planned to demolish it and rebuild it in the coming years because of its condition. “The apartments help us a lot to provide the people arriving in the city with living space and thus to fulfill our municipal task,” said Mayor Jörg Lutz according to the announcement. “We will implement further projects in order to be able to take care of all the expected people.” According to the information, the city took in 638 people with a refugee background last year, this year it should be 356.
The move will be supported logistically and financially by Wohnbau Lörrach, added Wohnbau Managing Director Thomas Nostadt. They also have a great deal of experience with the relocation of tenants in entire residential complexes, for example in the case of large renovation and modernization projects.
The affected tenants are to be informed on February 27 at a residents’ meeting. A corresponding letter was sent to the tenants last week, according to Wohnbau. It announces the termination and promises the tenants to offer alternative, suitable living space. “It is planned that around the end of the year the entire facility can be used as a refugee home,” the letter said.
(This article was first published on Tuesday, February 21, 2023.)
