A stir in Schladming

Sausage stand to make way for kebab snack bar

The "Steirische Würstelstand" in Schladming is on the verge of closing. The operator has collected numerous signatures against it.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/zVg)

Culinary conflict in the Upper Styrian ski metropolis of Schladming: a sausage stand operator is to move from a municipal site and is fighting for a contract extension. He accuses the mayor of breaking his word. 

"I put all my heart and soul into the sausage stand, I run it with my heart and soul!" says Albert Krasniqi desperately - because his restaurant in the center of the Styrian ski metropolis of Schladming is threatened with closure.

After Krasniqi took over the stand on the grounds of the municipality in 2020, the contract was not extended this year. "In 2022, I completely renovated the stand in consultation with the municipality. Later, the mayor verbally assured me of a long-term lease with a handshake," says the stall operator angrily. "And now a kebab stand is supposed to come here. I want to preserve Austrian sausage stand culture in Schladming."

There are already several kebab stands in Schladming. I want to preserve the Austrian sausage stand culture here.

Standbetreiber Albert Krasniqi

"Was unanimously decided in the municipal council"
An eviction action is currently pending. "We say the eviction request has been wrongly filed because they are not adhering to a verbal agreement," says Krasniqi's lawyer Hans-Moritz Pott.

"Legally, the matter is not simple. But I was a local councillor myself and I think a solution has to be found. The sausage stand is very popular," says Pott. According to Krasniqi, he has collected 2,000 signatures and presented them to the municipality.

The local council unanimously decided that the stand on the square would not be extended. This is to be implemented.

Bürgermeister Hermann Trinker

Schladming's mayor Hermann Trinker emphasizes: "The municipal council unanimously decided that the stand on the square would not be extended. This must be implemented." The verbal agreement in question never existed. "As mayor, I couldn't make a contract on my own, that has to be decided by the municipal council." 

The specific reasons are being kept under wraps. "There's always a coming and going with food stalls in Schladming. I believe the local council is able to decide who gets an extension and who doesn't." And should there really be a kebab stand here? "There are several applicants, one could also offer kebabs."