“Covid-19 has spread dramatically”: administrative court confirms Berlin gastronomy blockade – Berlin

Setback for Berlin restorers: their facilities remain closed. The fourth chamber of the Berlin Administrative Court on Tuesday rejected an urgent request from 22 restaurateurs. The administrative court announced in a press release.

The Berlin Senate ordinance, which had ordered the closure of factories in November, is based “on a constitutional legal basis.” The ban fulfills “the legitimate objective of fighting the Covid-19 disease, which has spread dramatically in Berlin in a very short time.”

In their reasoning, the judges noted that most infections could no longer be traced. Therefore, the claim that restaurants are not an essential “pandemic driver” is not tenable. Therefore, the ban is appropriate as a measure of a general package to combat the pandemic.

The court statement also noted: “It is also necessary because compliance with hygiene concepts that have previously been applied to restaurants is not enough. Gastronomy is characterized by the fact that people not only meet to eat, but also to socialize, communicate and make new contacts “.

In addition, according to the judges, the interference in the occupational freedom of the owners is justified because the federal government has promised to financially compensate the loss of income.

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The Berlin Senate sees the decision as confirmation of its approach. “We welcome the ruling of the administrative court, of course, because it also shows that the connection between the number of new infections and the measures taken is also seen in the courts,” said Secretary of State Martín Matz (SPD).

A gymnasium and the Schlosspark theater have also sued

The innkeepers, all represented by lawyer Niko Härting, had argued that the ban was not necessary because restaurants are not the “drivers of the pandemic.” Several innkeepers had already successfully demanded the curfew decided by the Senate in October.

A total of 77 restaurateurs had demanded the 10th change to the Berlin Infection Protection Ordinance. Today 22 applications were negotiated. The lock currently applies to the month of November. Cultural sites and sports clubs are also affected.

Complaints also came from a gym and cabaret artist Dieter Hallervorden’s Schlosspark-Theater. They saw themselves treated unevenly by the Senate because barber shops and retailers, for example, can still open. “Why is it allowed to open hair salons and close stages?” Hallervorden asked in a contribution that was shown on Monday night on the rbb “Abendschau”.

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Lawyer Härting confirmed the defeat in the administrative court on Twitter. Now check whether your law firm recommends its clients to appear before the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg.