The new building of the wholesale market hall, as it is currently planned, will shape the city like hardly any other project at the moment. Only the two high-rise buildings that are to be built on the site of the former parcel post hall will have a similar significance in the foreseeable future. But that’s not the only thing in common: Both buildings want to be built by the same investor, the well-known and well-connected entrepreneur Ralf Büschl. The fact that he now also wants to build the new wholesale market can be an opportunity for the city in a tricky situation. However, it would be an opportunity that involves considerable risk.
The negotiations with the previous investor, which were tough as chewing gum, had already shown that he had ripped off the project. As nice as the idea was that a company would implement this spectacular project itself from the wholesale market, it seems unrealistic in retrospect. Büschl, on the other hand, can do large-scale projects, which he has proven, even if he has never built one like the one in Sendling. He could break the knot that last seemed so tied. As routine as he is, in addition to a guaranteed period of time for completion, he has a second treat in front of the city’s noses: in addition to the office space planned so far, many apartments that are always longed for in the city are now to be built. Even the new, strict regulations on socially just use of land (Sobon), which guarantee a large number of affordable apartments, do not prevent him from getting started. These are highly controversial among investors. If someone like Büschl believes that it can be implemented economically, it would be a signal.
But the treats will have their price, that is already becoming apparent. For his help and his concessions to the Sobon, Büschl wants to largely determine himself how he builds. The planning department should not have the say, but rather the project should be pending at the mayor’s offices. He should not want a fundamental competition, as it would be urgently needed for a building that would shape the cityscape. Sounds like a carte blanche that Büschl would like to have from the city. This must now check precisely and very quickly how far it suits the investor or how far it doesn’t. The risk of giving yourself too much to the entrepreneur, who also owns a second important area such as the parcel post hall, is extremely high. The planning authority must remain with the city, if necessary with the result that the eternity project of the new wholesale market hall starts all over again.