2016/17: Master Plan 2030 for construction and mobility
- The Master Plan 2030 for Building and Mobility at the University of Hohenheim originally also provided for parking fees in order to keep external parkers off the campus and to provide University members who come with a car a parking space without having to search for it. However, at a staff meeting in December 2017 it became clear that the Staff Council would not agree to a parking management system. In view of this, the President and Chancellor decided not to pursue this part of the mobility plan any further.
6 March 2018: State government decides on parking fees
August 2018: Staff Council demands operating agreement
- The Staff Council submitted an initiative proposal for an operating agreement to the President's Office. Central demands: 80% of the permanent parking spaces should be reserved for employees, 20% for students, professors, etc. The President's Office rejected the initiative proposal. The Staff Council then contacted the Ministry of Science as part of a “stage procedure.” In October, the Ministry of Science rejected the initiative application. Justification: Since the future allocation of parking spaces is the responsibility of Parken BW, the University could not regulate it by means of an operating agreement. The Staff Council filed an appeal against this decision with the Stuttgart Administrative Court in spring 2019.
October 2018: Senate seeks fair fee model for all University members
- The Senate set up a Senate commission to develop a proposal for the future allocation of parking spaces on the campus. The commission was made up of 3 representatives each of students, employees, and professors. The President's Office announced that, if approved by the Senate, the results will be adopted as a University proposal. The only requirements: The distribution must take into account all groups of the University in a balanced way and the allocation procedure must not require University resources. The commission invited the Staff Council to be involved. The Staff Council refused and insisted on separate participation.
October/November 2018: University demands mobility allowance in collective bargaining
- On the initiative of President Prof. Dr. Dabbert, the University Management and the Staff Council called for a mobility allowance of € 50 to be included in the upcoming collective bargaining agreement due to the increasing mobility costs for employees. The state employees could use the € 50 for parking fees or to subsidize alternative mobility forms.
6 February 2019: Senate passes compromise proposal for parking fees
- With 19 votes in favor and 3 abstentions, the Senate supported the Commission proposal.. Instead of reserved parking spaces, there will only be day parking on campus. According to preliminary negotiations with Parken BW, this would result in costs of € 2 per day for University members and possibly € 2 per hour for visitors. The President's Office passed the proposal in the following week. The advantages: the proposal avoided any conflict over permanent parking passes, and parking space utilization would be higher. The disadvantage: for a five-day week, the monthly charge would be € 41, while Parken BW, in its standard procedure, allocates part of the parking spaces for only € 25 per month with permanent passes. However, anyone who did not receive a permanent pass would have had to spend approximately € 41 for the rest of the campus in the day parking spots.
19 March 2019: Staff Council refuses to approve Senate proposal
- 19 March 2019: The Staff Council refused to approve the proposal of the Senate for three reasons. First, they argued that consent would jeopardize the legal clarification before the court as to whether the rejection by the Ministry of the initiative of the Staff Council was legally permissible. Secondly, approval of the parking authorization concept would probably mean that the Staff Council would no longer be involved in the future decisions on parking management in accordance with the State Staff Representation Act. Finally, the standard allocation of BW parking spaces is more advantageous and cheaper for employees. The model presented by the Staff Council in its initiative proposal was also more advantageous for the employees than the model adopted by the Senate and President's Office.
20 March 2019: University management ends search for compromise within the University
27 March 2019: Parken BW took over central Senate proposals
- Parken BW Managing Director Gebhard Hruby confirmed in an interview with the Online Courier that he will adhere to two central demands of the Senate model : PBW parking spaces will only have day parking and no permanent passes. The fees for this will be € 2/day
16 August 2019: First PBW concept leaves questions open
- Parken BW presented an initial concept for the management of parking spaces on campus. The University then listed a number of open questions and asked for answers. This was not completely successful in the following months. At the initiative of the University, PBW and the University Chancellor agreed to meet on 8 August 8 2020.
20 July 2020: Construction work begins despite open questions
- Parken BW surprisingly started construction work for the first barriers. The University had received the announcement by email on 7 July 2020 and stated that it could not agree to the measures due to open questions and missing contracts. On 16 July 2020 the PBW had put pressure on the University with a threat: If the University did not agree to the start of construction on 20 July, Parken BW would not implement the Senate proposal. As a result, the University gave up its opposition to the project, which began on 20 July.
At the same time, it confirmed that before further measures could be taken, the open questions would have to be clarified. It is still unclear, for example, when the parking fees are due, how they are to be paid, and what regulations exist for bicycles, craftspeople, and delivery services.
In addition, the University expects a legal regulation that the responsibility for cleaning and traffic safety in the parking areas will also be transferred to PBW.
