The Freiburg Administrative Court has rejected the urgent application from two restaurateurs. They wanted to tip the curfew – and open their bars longer than 11 p.m.
In the city of Freiburg and the district of Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald there has been a curfew for restaurants from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. since last Thursday. The background is the spread of the corona virus in the city and the district. Jan Happle from the Purpur cocktail bar in Mllheim and the operator of the Freiburg Beat Bar Butzemann had opposed this with their lawyers and wanted to enforce longer opening hours for their bars.
The Freiburg administrative court rejected this urgent application because the general disposal of the Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district office was “probably lawful”, as stated in a press release. “The extension of the blocking period is suitable to achieve the goal of combating the pandemic with the SARS-CoV-2 virus,” is the reasoning.
The extension of the blocking period contributes to a reduction in the number of contacts and thus restricts the opportunities for the virus to be transmitted, especially since the risk of transmission in indoor areas increases sharply, especially through aerosol excretion when speaking, singing or laughing loudly.
“The statement by the applicants that the extension of the blocking period would only lead to a shift towards private celebrations represents the suitability of the measure
not in question, “said the court.
The court did not convince the restaurant industry to object
The extension of the blocking period is proportionate, despite the associated economic consequences for the applicants. “In view of the severe health consequences for sick people in individual cases and the current risk of exponential growth, there is considerable public interest in combating the Covid 19 pandemic.”
It is true that the operation of restaurants must meet the hygiene requirements of the Corona regulation. “It seems understandable, however, that at least in the late evening and under the influence of alcohol, the protective and hygiene measures are not fully complied with,” the court added. The health department had pointed out Verste, which the police force had found.
The objection that the catering industry only makes an insignificant contribution to the infection process did not convince the court. It was precisely on this point that the operators of the Freiburg Beatbar Butzemann and the Mllheimer Cocktailbar relied. “You send people from the legally secure environment of gastronomy into the private sector, where the whole thing is no longer controllable,” said Happle from Mllheim.
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) points out that it is very difficult to narrow down or determine the source of the infection, and the infection rate is diffuse in most circles, the Freiburg administrative court announced. This is also confirmed by the Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald health department, which has not been able to detect any hotspots in the past few weeks. In contrast to accommodation providers, restaurants are typically aimed at making contact. “In the case of infections, the necessary follow-up of contacts is difficult given the often inadequate or incorrect contact data.”
The resolutions are not yet final. The applicants can lodge a complaint with the Administrative Court of Baden-Wrttemberg in Mannheim within two weeks.
Mllheimer Happle now wants to wait and see what politics will decide in the next few days, as he told the BZ on Tuesday afternoon. He first wants to know whether there will be stricter requirements for restaurateurs before he plans the next step. However, he also reserves the right to lodge a complaint in the next higher instance with the Administrative Court.
More on the subject:
–
