The term inter+local trade area designates the co-operation of several municipalities when planning, realization and marketing of trade areas. The concept is part of the lastingness strategies of different political levels. Inter+local trade areas represent municipality borders and administrative borders by the development of a spreading strategy a component of regional development.

During the arrangement of co-operation various combinations of legal and administrative instruments are possible. A tying to existing experiences in other task ranges of the local government policy is often possible (e.g. waste water federations, libraries, schools, town planning).

Motivation

By competition thinking for losing the fear before the Abwerbung of enterprises and inhabitants as well as fears at control load was the co-operation of several municipalities into the 1990er years an exception. Particularly in the relations between cities in population centres and their surrounding countryside municipalities such fears played a large role. In individual cases these are occupied also by purposeful Abwerbungsversuche.

The economic tendencies of the globalization and in particular Europeanizing led to the fact that no more is crucial the quality of location of an individual municipality, but those the entire region. The internal-regional competition of the municipalities existing so far was extended by a competition of the regions. While in the population centres for upright attitude or for the re-establishment of the operability of the residential area a co-operation is inevitable already, the municipalities can maintain ground only together against the competition of other regions. This economical perspective is reflected however only rarely in the local beginnings to co-operation again. Examples, in this direction point are the future initiative Aachener area registered association (ZAR) and the so-called "“technology region the Karlsruhe"” as well as the Regionalkonferenzen in North Rhine-Westphalia.

As reasons for inter+local co-operation with the trade area politics the following three aspects became generally accepted:

• Municipalities, which will bring in own surfaces for the development of the trade area - at least partly - from the costs of the development (purchase, development, interest etc.) relieved.
• Conflicts around new trade areas in other municipalities involved are avoidable, costs of no longer the necessary development of such areas result no longer in the original height and the municipality participate nevertheless in a successful area development by tax receipts and job development.
• By expansion of the search area for the best location of a new trade area on all municipalities involved an optimization of the employment of funds is possible and the consideration of ecological interests at the best one attainable. Beyond that the competitive situation is defused within the region and the extorting barness of the municipalities is reduced.

Accordingly are also the reasons, which arrange municipalities to aim at co-operation:

• Surface scarceness in the municipality, which is to be repaired only at disproportionate expenditure or not at all;
• already existing concentration within the local neighbourhood on a central trade place;
• Restrictions, which permit commercial construction areas only at certain locations;
• the search for common use (synergies);
• in individual cases the size of the task - determines by investor desires or from political calculation -, which cannot be mastered by the initiating municipality alone.

Basic conditions

Often the search for co-operation is taken up out by individual municipalities from an obligation situation (surface bottlenecks, large projects). This obligation is not sufficient according to experience for a successful co-operation. Mitentscheidende factors are

• the prehistory of the co-operation, which the relationship of the municipalities involved grown historically concerning competition relations (trades, wide retail trade, inhabitant) includes;
• external influencing controls, e.g. by superordinate authorities. Such an influencing control can to be also worked promoting as restraining;
• mental or personal barriers between the participants involved. Here it comes particularly on the equivalent treatment differently large co-operation partner on (avoidance of dominance behavior). Frequently also "“chemistry"” is not correct between the involved ones;
• a further Stolperstein is the process of co-operation. This must run expectations of the involved ones appropriately, problems arises, if the objectives are too highly screwed and a particularly high expenditure to require.

Practical problems

For the success of local co-operation can be already crucial, to which time and through whom the initiative is seized. A municipality about, which has a special interest in a co-operation it will with difficulty have to produce a positive resonance with its neighbours if these profit only in small measure from this co-operation. It is favourable in such cases, if the initiative from outside (e.g. District government) comes.

The selection of the surfaces for that trade area which can be developed together is frequently by already existing landed property of the municipalities or certain proven surfaces in building guidance plans in the outlines. There is however also different constellations conceivable:

• the region of the area are fixed, not however the exact delimitations which can be planned and the size. In such a case is a fundamental consent possible by specialized appraisals to be verified can.
• the planned trade area of a municipality pushes during regional planning on refusal and only under the condition is entitled that the contingents of neighbouring municipalities are taken into account on that. In such a case are already fixed size and circumscription of the area.

A substantial question is the selection of the municipalities or private investors who can be taken part. The participation in a co-operation is not bound to whether the participants bring in own surfaces. It requires loadable criteria which speak for the selection. This can do e.g. Job market and commuter entwinements its. Also the inclusion of private participants can be meaningful, if it concerns e.g. owners of large surfaces in the Entwicklungsbereich or around owners, who do not sell their surfaces (e.g. Churches).

As legals form for inter+local trade areas are possible:

• Working groups, necessarily for this is only a publicly legal contract;
• Purpose agreements, a publicly legal contract, private one is necessary can not participate here;
• Zweckverband, by statute is created a new body of public right with very large organization possibilities;
• common local enterprise, by statute is created a new body of public right.

Beside these specifically local-economical forms the possibility exists to create a GmbH by articles of association.

The legal form for co-operation, which can be selected, depends on the purpose of co-operation. To differentiate are the here following cases:

• only planning and tuning
• Planning, tuning and common development
• Planning, tuning, common development and marketing.

A question, to co-operation easily to fail is the allocation of the expenditures and incomes from the common project knows. As incomes such result from sales of real estate, real estate tax and trade tax.

As distribution yardsticks offer themselves the brought in surface portions of the municipalities, the inhabitant or employment figures of the municipalities and the relations of the trade tax incomes of the municipalities. Beyond that also even allocations and special arrangements are conceivable.

Problems can develop with trade areas, which extend over several Gemeindegebiete and where it in these municipalities gives different trade tax rates of assessment. As solution of this problem only an adjustment of the rates of assessment is possible.

Similar problems step in the cases mentioned regarding different rates of charge for infrastructure service on. Here likewise an adjustment of the rates of charge can be the solution or however the engagement of a development company under private law.

Articles in category "Inter+local trade area"

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