No deadline pressure: Internet announcements are effective immediately!

No deadline pressure: Internet announcements are effective immediately!

The owner of a property in the E.-Stadt district is currently dealing with a hot topic: She is planning to build a four-party house and is confronted with a change ban that is intended to secure support for a new development plan. The city council had already passed the decision to draw up this new plan on June 20, 2024, but the applicant believes that the announcement was improper. This could have an impact on the approval of her building project because she would like to defend herself against this block on change.

On July 2, 2024, the establishment decision was published on the municipality's website. You can read about the lack of this approach in current case law. Lawyer Dr. Amelie Rossipaul from CMS Hasche Sigle explained that notices published on the internet are effective immediately. In contrast to notices, there is no deadline for this, which means that the announcement on the municipality's website takes effect immediately. This is the ruling of the Lüneburg Higher Administrative Court of January 21, 2025, which summarizes the legal basis on this issue well and largely dismisses the applicant's arguments. However, she is convinced that an internet announcement does not reach all citizens.

What is behind the change barrier?

The change ban was introduced to ensure the redesign of the development plan No. 3.02, which is already based on a plan from 1983 with later modifications. This means that municipal planning should not be made more difficult or even prevented. The applicant demands that the ban on changes be declared ineffective because the announcement of the establishment decision did not take the necessary measures. On September 17, 2024, she submitted an application for judicial review to the responsible court.

• Die Veränderungssperre gilt zunächst für zwei Jahre und kann maximal um ein Jahr verlängert werden.
• Sie tritt außer Kraft, wenn die erforderlichen Bedingungen entfallen oder der Plan verabschiedet ist.

However, the court found that the announcement of the installation decision was effective and that notices in other public places were not necessary. A simpler service to provide additional information is not enough, they say. This makes it clear that the process for drawing up land-use plans, as described by Dr. Rossipaul explains that it is complex and requires clear regulations. These affect not only the content of the plans, but also the manner in which they are announced.

The route is the goal

Finally, it should be noted that decision-making through regulatory control applications is not only of interest to the investors affected. The entire process shows the challenges that communities face when they want to continue their land use planning. Ultimately, this affects residents and investors alike, who rely on clear and transparent handling of the announcements. This situation has changed in recent years due to digital transformation and raises the question: How is the public informed about construction projects and changes in their surroundings? The positive approach to digital platforms and the legally regulated process in the coming years could provide an answer to this.

It remains to be seen whether the applicant will be right in her case. She lost her first attempt because the court, in its assessment, declared the change ban to be legally and technically unchallengeable. The ruling represents an important precedent and could have future relevance for similar proceedings, as the regulations for notice in land-use planning must be applied in practice more than ever.

Further information on these legal aspects can be found at iz.de, voris.wolterskluwer-online.de and juracademy.de. become.