The future of Munich’s only alcohol-free restaurant is secured. As the operator of the “alcohol-free meeting place”, the Club 29 association, and the landlord of the building on Dachauer Strasse, the Caritas Association of the Archdiocese of Munich, announced in a joint statement that they have settled the months-long dispute and found a “workable solution”.
It is still unclear exactly what this will look like – either a new rental agreement will be signed, or the “alcohol-free meeting” will be allowed to remain in its premises under the current conditions. However, Caritas and Club 29 agreed in a joint voting protocol: “A clean and legally secure contractual solution for both parties is sought.”
An impending legal dispute is therefore off the table for now – although there are still different opinions about the tenancy agreement. Caritas is of the opinion that it correctly terminated the contract at the end of the previous year. On the other hand, Club 29 believes that it has the option of a five-year extension, which they have made use of.
For the association, which also offers more than a dozen self-help groups for alcoholics in the building, the restaurant on the ground floor is “indispensable as a low-threshold offer,” says managing director Peter Knoll. He is relieved about the agreement: “The cow is off the ice. We have far more important tasks ahead of us than resource-consuming disputes in court.” Meanwhile, Stefanie Wiederuh from Caritas emphasizes: “We are interested in finding a good solution for a future tenancy at Dachauer Straße 29, as we see Club 29 as an important, unique institution worth preserving.”