Controversy over campsite lease renewal in Lower Austria: Proprietors advocate for lease extension
In a surprising turn of events, the Windhag Stipendienstiftung Niederösterreich, the owners of Gut Ottenstein and associated properties, have terminated several lease agreements last October. Among these agreements were those for camping sites Dobra, Ruine Dobra, and Ottenstein.
However, despite extensive research, there is currently no available information regarding a change of ownership at Stausee Dobra, nor details about the reasons for the ownership change, the new operator, or plans for improvement at the reservoir.
The facility in Dobra, currently operated by Thomas Hafner and his wife, will continue to be in their care until October due to a one-year notice period. Despite this, Hafner will not be the new operator, as the Stausee Camping WVTL GmbH will now take over the management of all three sites.
The decision to terminate Hafner's lease was due to a significantly increased rent. Hafner and his wife, who have been operating the camping site for 13 years, have created a petition on their company website, which has already been signed by over 4,300 people, including satisfied campers.
The re-leasing of the plots was based on a comprehensive evaluation of existing lease agreements, with economic pressure and rent being factors. Regionality and the development of long-term concepts were the main criteria for evaluating the submissions. An open tender was conducted for the re-leasing of the plots, via platforms of the Chamber of Commerce and various professional associations.
Alexander Warringer, CEO of the Stausee Camping WVTL GmbH, stated that 40 inquiries were received, with 20 applications making it to the shortlist. However, the exact number of inquiries or applications for the re-leasing process is not provided. Warringer and Markus Reichenvater from Gut Ottenstein disagree with Hafner's assessment about the quality of the new lessees' concepts.
The basic qualities of the region, such as sustainability and tranquility, should be maintained, and the offered program should be further developed. At the moment, the Windhag Stipendienstiftung Niederösterreich does not yet want to comment on planned improvements to the sites.
- The Windhag Stipendienstiftung Niederösterreich, who previously owned Gut Ottenstein and associated properties, has now expanded their business interests into the finance sector, as they have invested in a real-estate company, Stausee Camping WVTL GmbH, to manage their leasehold properties like Stausee Dobra.
- The decision to terminate Thomas Hafner's business relationship with Windhag Stipendienstift Niederösterreich was not only based on rent increase but also on the development of long-term concepts for the real-estate investments, and the new lessees, Stausee Camping WVTL GmbH, have shown promising ideas for the improvement and further development of the camping sites Dobra, Ruine Dobra, and Ottenstein.
