Sticker madness in Giessen: City decides on new fines!

Sticker madness in Giessen: City decides on new fines!

In Gießen, the city council is taking up a hotly debated topic: stickers on lampposts and signs. Next Thursday, a revision of the Hazard Prevention Ordinance will be on the agenda, which would also like to take action against unwanted adhesive actions at the same time as new regulations. The city administration estimates that stickers not only spoil the cityscape, but also endanger traffic safety because they can impair the readability of signs. Mayor Alexander Wright (Greens) has already emphasized that the city police should take action against these new offenses in the future, which, in the magistrate's opinion, also represents a question of damage to property. The magistrate has therefore drawn up a strict set of rules, which even threatens fines of up to 5,000 euros for violations.

Before the new measures were decided, there was already a heated discussion in the city council's main committee. FDP city councilor Dominik Erb questioned the regulations and brought up why sticking on signs and garbage cans was not explicitly addressed. Wright referred to an existing paragraph that regulates protection against contamination, but only applies to certain advertising media.

Stickers in public spaces: A growing problem

But Gießen is not alone with this issue. According to reports from other cities, such as Jena, the problem of unauthorized stickers in public spaces has increased in recent years. Anke Schleenvoigt from the city of Jena speaks of a massive increase in stickers, which clearly shows that great attention must currently be paid to cleanliness and safety in public spaces, because stickers on traffic signs can endanger safety. In Erfurt, for example, fines of up to 5,000 euros can be imposed, but the challenges in enforcement are enormous because the perpetrators often cannot be identified.

The financial burden caused by the removal of these stickers should not be neglected. Cities often have to spend a lot of money to remove the glue. Jena invests between 25,000 and 50,000 euros annually in distance costs. Removing a single sticker can take up to an hour and the price is around 50 euros per hour. And this at a time when municipalities have to make savings in every corner.

Nice here: A linguistic derailment?

Some of these stickers are known from the so-called “Nice here” image campaign of the state of Baden-Württemberg. These sticky messages have now even made it to the deep sea. However, placing such stickers on someone else's property is legally very questionable. Attaching stickers can be considered damage to property, which can lead to criminal proceedings and possible claims for damages. Fines for stickering in public places can range between 70 and 300 euros, depending on the circumstances of the individual case.

Until now, many such offenses have rarely been reported, mainly because no one often knows who put the stickers on them. Especially in larger cities like Stuttgart, these complaints against unknown people are often doomed to failure.

The discussion about stickers and their impact on the cityscape, safety and public costs shows how complex this issue is. Cities around the world are facing a similar challenge and are looking for suitable solutions. Giessen could set an example with its new regulation and perhaps encourage other municipalities to deal more closely with the problem.