Münster (dpa / lnw) - Private organizers of weekly markets cannot defend themselves against the assumption of the task by cities and municipalities in North Rhine-Westphalia. The Higher Administrative Court (OVG) for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia pointed this out on Wednesday in Münster. In the specific case, the organizer of the weekly market in Velbert in the Mettmann district had taken legal action against the city's market setting. Since April 1, 2022, Velbert has been running the weekly market itself again as a public institution. Before that, the task had been in private hands since 2004. According to the NRW municipal code, however, the applicant is not entitled to this. The Higher Administrative Court thus followed a decision by the Düsseldorf Administrative Court from the lower court. The urgent decision is not contestable. (Ref.: 4 B 441/22).
As justification, the Higher Administrative Court stated that traditional municipal weekly markets are held in central public areas in NRW without exceeding the permissible limits of the economic commitment of the municipalities. Rather, the offers serve as economic promotion. Even if a municipality has not performed the task for a certain time, as in the Velbert case, this does not change the legal situation.
According to the 4th Senate of the OVG, there was therefore no need for a selection decision between the private applicant and the city as market organiser. According to municipal law, it is irrelevant whether such markets can be organized better or more economically by private providers.
