Rampage in Rheinfelden: Drunken youths arrested
A group of youths are facing charges after allegedly going on a rampage at the campus of the Realschule in Rheinfelden (Germany) on Friday night. The police arrested two of the teenagers and handed them over to their parents. Five of the group are facing charges.
The police station in Rheinfelden received a call at around 1.30am on Saturday morning that a large group of youths had assembled and were going on a rampage at the Realschule. Some of them fled when the police arrived but officers were able to stop and search 12 of the youths. They were mostly adolescents from Rheinfelden, including a few who were heavily inebriated. Two of them were so drunk they had to be taken into custody. One drunken youngster was picked up by one of his parents.
Four youths are facing charges because they had ignored the expulsion order they had been given by the authorities. One person gave false personal details to the police and will also be charged.
The police operation was over after about an hour and all parties left the Realschule area.
Kaserne: Where is the restaurant promised by “Parterre”, and what else is going wrong?
After a long delay, the “Parterre” aims to open a restaurant in the former janitor's apartment of the Kaserne by the end of the month. However, some of the necessary preparations are still missing.
There should have been food and drink available there weeks ago. The “Parterre” is planning an interim use for the apartment until August 2018. A bar in the basement, a restaurant on the ground floor, and a possibility to hold banquets upstairs were all planned. Yet nothing can be seen so far.
Date uncertain
Obviously, the plan did not go through the way the organisers had intended. The redesign plans were published in the cantonal archive, and the opening should have been celebrated in mid-June. However, the date had been postponed for more than a month: 20 July is the new goal, the Kaserne managers told barfi.ch. But this deadline will also not be met, and now they hope to open by the end of July. There are no plans for large-scale redesigns, a spokesperson for the “Focketyn del Rio Studio”, the office responsible for the architecture, said. This is no new name for the Kaserne: The architects already planned the freshly renovated Parterre One and are drawing up the renovations and redesigns for the main Kaserne building. No newbies, you would think.
Plans for Theatre Basel are also going nowhere
The construction area at the bank of the Rhine is not the only place where “Parterre” has not fulfilled its promises, however. Another restaurant extension is set to open at Theaterstrasse 4. Since April, there have been announcements that the former “Rägedropfe” store will be offering tapas food there in the future.
However, "should have been offering" would be the better tense to use, because apart from posters advertising these plans, nothing has happened in the area. In April, “Parterre” was claiming that the restaurant would open in two months' time. Had anyone relied on that, they would have starved from hunger. Empty promises and posters do not fill one’s belly. Neither do the walls of information against barfi.ch. The whole affair is beginning to stink, but unfortunately, it isn’t the food which smells.
Tattoo remains at Kaserne: Exclusive interview with government president Elisabeth Ackermann
For the last time, the Kaserne Basel is entering its second half of the festival year in its original form. The renovations start in autumn 2018, and government president Elisabeth Ackermann has already had to intervene because of the artist ateliers. In her first interview about the Kaserne, she clearly acknowledges the continuation of the Basel Tattoo – and Kleinbasel.
Mrs Ackermann, the Kaserne has entered its last festival summer and autumn without any construction scaffoldings. After 90 days in office, you described the Kaserne as a project close to your heart and at the top of the priority list. Why?
Elisabeth Ackermann: The renovation of the Kaserne is a very exciting project. In my opinion, it is especially important for Kleinbasel, as the Kaserne will become a major centre for culture and life. It is a very interesting place that unites many aspects of life, humans, cultures, and cultural events. And it is also a place very typical for Kleinbasel: So many people from so many different worlds live in this part of the city, and all of this culminates at the Kaserne.
What is the political interest of the government president in this project?
The Kaserne is equally important for Kleinbasel as well as for culture. In earlier days, this was still called “alternative culture”, but the expression is hardly used anymore. The Kaserne offers a vast range of culture nowadays, which is in demand and encouraged politically as well.
As soon as the vote for the renovation was accepted, there was a conflict with artists who had to leave their affordable ateliers at Kaserne. What is the current status of your negotiations?
The situation has become a bit more relaxed because we are starting this part of the renovations half a year later – at the same time as the main building renovations. This is a relief only from a schedule perspective. In addition, the cultural division is in close contact with the artists. Of course, it is difficult to find a comparable object for artistic activities.
Is there a possible replacement?
It is rather unrealistic to find something in the same range, particularly regarding prices. But it is also not the job of the presidential department to find such replacements. However, we do support the tenants as well as we can; this is perfectly clear.
Why do you put the Kaserne centre-stage and why not another project such as the complex area developments like Klybeck Plus or Auf dem Wolf?
The renovation of the Kaserne is a set plan and soon to be realised. The entire project is starting now. Since the renovation is also closely linked to the cultural sector, the project is likewise close to me from this perspective. We are of course also dealing with all the other projects and they are equally important for the city development, but they have a different time schedule.
How is the cooperation with the involved parties? It is not just the presidential department that is responsible for the Kaserne, after all.
This is correct, we are the end users of the Kaserne, according to the canton. The Construction and Traffic Department is responsible for the building, and the Financial Department is a key player due to its funding. The cooperation is running very well, we are currently lining up the project realisation with all the corresponding sections to guarantee a hopefully undisturbed development. This is a huge challenge because cultural events will be happening at the same time. The Basel Tattoo, the Herbstmesse, the Open Air Basel, and the normal operation of the Kaserne will continue. Therefore, good coordination between all parties is vital.
What is the time frame?
The renovation of the main building and the former atelier rooms will start in autumn 2018, right after the Basel Tattoo and the Open Air Basel. Currently, preparatory works including the planning application are in progress.
And how are the end users reacting to the renovation project – especially the Basel Tattoo, whose organisers voted against the project?
We are putting enough goodwill into cooperating with the Basel Tattoo to ensure that the festival can proceed normally. This is very important to us. The vote result was accepted by them, and no negative feedback has since then been given. We are on good terms.
This is the last summer of the current Kaserne before the construction start in autumn 2018. Are you looking forward to the events?
Of course, and I am also looking forward to visiting the Kaserne events in the autumn while it is still in its current state. There will naturally be limitations during the construction works, but it is like that with every building project.
There were enough conflicts about the area: Organisers such as the Basel Tattoo on one side, and local residents on the other. How do you mediate between the Kaserne users and all the interested parties?
I see things like this: It is far from negative to have so many people involved. These different opinions make Kleinbasel interesting and a place worth living. But yes, it is true there is potential for conflict. We are therefore in constant discussions. Even though we cannot fulfill every demand, the days before the vote showed that the Kaserne users had found a common ground and were in support of the project. We can build on this and continue the cooperation by listening to Kaserne users and residents alike.
Apart from such projects of the heart: What is currently filling up your daily diary?
A lot of tasks. As government president, I am responsible for the functions of the general State Council – i.e. the preparation and conducting of business and meetings. There are currently also many representational appearances and of course the recruitments for the leadership of canton and city development as well as culture. The representatives in Bern and the negotiations with Baselland are also very time-consuming.
Your accession to office was a jump in at the deep end. You had to deal with open portfolios and recruitments. Did you manage these challenges well?
Yes. Of course I first had to become familiar with the variety of portfolios. But I have excellent co-workers who support me in these matters. We were able to line up a lot of things already, and the presidential department is taking up momentum. I am happy to be in this department, and the variety of tasks makes it all the more interesting.
Nevertheless, the “Basler Zeitung” wrote that you needed support in your department, and the Green Party accused you of being overtaxed. After your first media conference, the “bz Basel” was concerned that people wished former government president Guy Morin would come back. How do you deal with this?
The article in the “Basler Zeitung” was based on rumours and anonymous sources who we are not sure even exist. I am in very close contact with my party and can say: Some statements were not even true. There was talk of a general assembly where the topic was discussed. I was present at this assembly and can say: It is not true. Apart from this, I provide no comments about rumours and statements by anonymous sources.