Schlotterer expansion: Project opponents are planning a second attempt
The sun protection manufacturer Schlotterer will build a third plant on the Adnet fields in order to increase the number of employees from the current 660 to 1,400 in the next few years. The project itself is ready for construction, 120 million euros are to be invested.
Signatures invalid due to formal errors
The plans are likely to have become much more realistic after a meeting of the municipal elections authorities, because the number of signatures required for a citizens’ vote on the project does not seem to have been reached for formal reasons. The “Save the Adnetfelder” initiative collected 430 signatures in the community of 3,700 inhabitants for the desired citizens’ initiative and submitted them at the end of July.
Opponent: “It was clear that the community would find a back door”
After the supposed setback, the project opponents say “now more than ever” and prepare a second list of signatures: “Our mayor shuns direct democracy like the devil shuns holy water. We already expected that a back door would be found here to bypass 500 Adnet citizens. I want to know why he’s so scared of letting his voters have a say in a decision like this. We already have the second citizen survey application in the pipeline and, as you saw with the Mönchsberg garage, everything was approved and the result of the citizen survey also overturned the project,” says the spokesman for the platform “Save the Adnetfelder”, Georg sheikher.
Municipality creates crack in the population
The presumed negative decision for a referendum is still in progress, it should be delivered at the beginning of next week. The Mayor of Adnet, Wolfgang Auer (ÖVP), admits a rift through the community: “Of course, you also have to understand the residents who are not agreed with the project. There are pros and cons everywhere. After considering all things, the ÖVP in Adnet decided to stick with the project.”
Schlotterer needs expansion
The sun protection manufacturer Schlotterer is extremely successful and a sought-after employer. In the previous year, 2,000 applications from potential employees and employees were counted. The company emphasizes that the expansion is needed and that it is taking into account the residents, so that the new plant can be opened up via the Wiestal-Landesstraße. “In principle, there is no company traffic through the main town area,” says Schlotterer Managing Director Wolfgang Neutatz.
Project opponent: “Building is as big as the airport”
The opponents of the project see things differently – they criticize the fact that a rural residential community with small-scale businesses was suddenly turned into one of the largest industrial communities in the country. “And that without talking to the population about it. The structure is enormous – it’s as big as if they were rebuilding Salzburg Airport here,” says Georg Scheicher from Adnet. The battle between neighboring interests and economic interests is also entering the next round in Adnet.