Eben

Authorities re-examine dubious deal

This meadow is the bone of contention. Was everything above board with the sale? That is now being re-examined.(Bild: Nikolaus Klinger)

A sham deal? Or was everything above board? The sale of an agricultural property in Eben raises many questions. Now the inspectors are moving in again.

Critics called it a "dubious deal", the SPÖ (Social Democratic Party of Austria) identified a "sham and circumvention deal" - and the "Krone" also reported on it several times: A farmer sold a farm in Eben, including ten hectares of land. The buyer is a Pongau family with an agricultural background. The Salzburg Land Transfer Commission approved the purchase and, in an already legally binding decision, even waived the new owners' obligation to farm the property.

This is because there is already an option agreement with a neighboring company for part of the land. If the municipality converts the area in question, with a total area of almost 9500 square meters, from grassland to building land, the company can purchase the property. Farmland in the hands of farmers - this legally valid principle would be thrown overboard.

In the meantime, the land transfer authority also has doubts about the legal transaction. As can be seen from the response to a parliamentary question from the SPÖ, the matter is being re-examined. "From the point of view of the Land Transfer Commission, there were grounds for reopening the case, as relevant circumstances were concealed," it says verbatim. It will examine whether the land was acquired for "speculative purposes".

The Ebner buyer himself - represented by lawyer Peter Perner - vehemently denied this to the "Krone" recently. "There is nothing dubious about this purchase," Perner emphasized at the time. The sale had been legally approved.

Land Transfer Commission examines many other cases
This case is just one of a number of land sales that the commission is currently scrutinizing again. "I am pleased that the authority is working so closely and is looking at the old transactions again on its own initiative. This also has a preventative character for the future," SPÖ Member of Parliament Karin Dollinger is certain.