The development plan was approved by referendum on June 18, 2023, but no legally binding building permits can be issued for the project until mid-July 2026. The city of Arbon continues to treat the plan as not yet legally binding because appeals are pending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
The focus at this time is not yet on the substantive assessment of the high-rise buildings, but rather on the question of whether Thurgau Heritage Protection even has the right to file objections and appeals in the proceedings. Thus, the Federal Supreme Court will first determine who is formally entitled to have a say in the further course of the case. For the project developer, this is more than just a side issue, because without a conclusion to the proceedings, neither the schedule nor the implementation under building regulations can be reliably determined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
A Formal Question with Real-World Implications The proceedings have taken on added significance due to the demand by the Heritage Protection Association for an assessment by the Federal Commission for Nature and Heritage Protection. The association considers the project problematic due to the protected townscape and notes in its 2024 annual report that the parcel in question is listed in the ISOS. Whether and in what form such an expert assessment will play a role later on remains to be seen, however, as the parties\u2019 standing in the proceedings is currently being clarified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n The alternative project also remains controversial For owners, authorities, and potential buyers, this means ongoing legal uncertainty regarding one of the most prominent development sites on the Arbon lakeshore. Even after the referendum, it remains unclear whether the site will eventually be developed with high-rise buildings, a lower-rise residential complex, or only after further years of legal proceedings.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" On the shores of Lake Arbon, the development of the former Metropol site continues to face delays. The design plan for the two 43-meter-tall Riva Towers will still not be legally binding by July 2026, as the proceedings regarding the objection filed by Thurgau Heritage Protection have now been taken all the way to the Federal Supreme Court.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":161510,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"pmpro_default_level":"","_surecart_dashboard_logo_width":"180px","_surecart_dashboard_show_logo":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_orders":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_invoices":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_subscriptions":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_downloads":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_billing":true,"_surecart_dashboard_navigation_account":true,"inline_featured_image":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[55990,56026,56002,22341],"tags":[60622,20687,12961,26795,12525,12526,12528,60623,60624],"class_list":["post-161509","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-districts-areas","category-planning-development","category-residential","category-thurgau-en","tag-arbon","tag-bundesgericht-en","tag-gestaltungsplan-en","tag-heimatschutz-en","tag-immoinvest-en","tag-immonews-en","tag-news-en","tag-riva","tag-seeufer","pmpro-has-access"],"acf":{"bild_mit_ki_erstellt_worden":["Ja"],"lead":"On the shores of Lake Arbon, the development of the former Metropol site continues to face delays. The design plan for the two 43-meter-tall Riva Towers will still not be legally binding by July 2026, as the proceedings regarding the objection filed by Thurgau Heritage Protection have now been taken all the way to the Federal Supreme Court.","autor":"","ort":"","bildunterschrift":"","zusammenfassung":"","bild_im_grid":false,"gallerie":"","newsim":"3399"},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
<\/strong>The project on the former Metropol site calls for two 43-meter-tall buildings on the lakeshore. After a referendum, objections, and parliamentary deliberations, the proposal was put to a public vote and received a \u201cyes\u201d in 2023. Nevertheless, legal avenues remained open. Particularly in locations sensitive to the local character, this case demonstrates that a political decision alone does not yet create a basis ready for construction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/strong>In addition to the design plan, the alternative project has not yet been resolved. In May 2023, the city of Arbon granted a building permit for the four-story development, constructed using standard building methods, comprising 48 condominiums and an underground parking garage. According to reports from Arbon, the Thurgau Heritage Society was deemed by the Administrative Court in its decision of March 11, 2026, to lack standing to appeal in this proceeding and also intends to take the case to the next level of jurisdiction. As a result, the prominent lakeside property remains blocked on two fronts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n