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The Friederikentherme in Bad Langensalza. © IMAGO/F. Anthea Schaap
The municipal facility in Bad Langensalza, Thuringia, is on the verge of bankruptcy. The trigger is a legal dispute with the local hotel, which is demanding millions in compensation.
Bad Langensalza – A legal dispute could have dramatic consequences for the town of Bad Langensalza in Thuringia: After years of back and forth, the Federal Court of Justice ruled at the beginning of August that the Städtische Holding Langensalza (SHL) could be obliged to pay damages to a hotel. As a result, the company, which is 100 percent owned by the town of Bad Langensalza, is now threatened with insolvency. MDR Thuringia.
Municipal company facing insolvency: Court confirms lawsuit against thermal baths
The background to the story is a usage contract that was terminated in 2018 between the municipal baths, the Friederikentherme, and the operator of a neighboring hotel, the Hotel Sante Royale. The two buildings are connected by a corridor, so that hotel guests could easily walk between the hotel and the thermal baths. It was agreed until 2020 that hotel guests would pay a flat rate and in return could use the baths unlimitedly. The corridor between the two buildings was therefore colloquially dubbed the “bathrobe corridor.”
In 2020, however, SHL terminated the contract with the hotel, meaning that guests could no longer use the bathrobe corridor. According to the operator, this caused his booking numbers to collapse, which is why he is demanding compensation. As the MDR Thuringia reported that this termination of the contract was not legal. Judges have now confirmed this on several occasions, most recently at the beginning of August by the Federal Court of Justice.
Insolvent city? Decision on compensation will only come
Mayor Matthias Reinz said loudly MDRthat the situation is now serious, not to say “crappy”. On Thursday (22 August) the supervisory board is to meet to discuss a way out of insolvency. The amount of the damages claim will be clarified in a separate procedure. This decision is to be made at the beginning of September, as the regional court wanted to wait for the BGH ruling. Whether the 1.5 million euros demanded will really be the case remains to be seen.
