Information on the referendum on 22 October

The question to be voted on here must not be chosen by the administration. The initiators of a citizens' petition have the task of formulating a question that fulfils the necessary legal requirements.

This is a citizens' petition by way of a petition for review, i.e. one that is directed against a concrete decision of the council. In this specific case, the question to be put to the vote must therefore be directed against the resolution of the city council meeting from May 2023.

The administration advised the initiators of the citizens' petition on how the question to be put to the vote could be formulated. Since the initiators wanted a "yes" vote to mean that no refugee accommodation would be built, the question was worded accordingly.

Explanations in the voting booklet

Together with the voting notification, all Bocholt residents entitled to vote will receive a voting booklet (click here). In it, among other things, the question and the corresponding effects will be clearly stated once again:

YES = I vote against the construction of a refugee shelter at the location "Auf dem Takenkamp".

NO = I vote for the construction of a refugee shelter at the "Auf dem Takenkamp" site.

In individual media reports on the referendum it was claimed that no real limitation of the number of people and the duration of refugee accommodation at the "Auf dem Takenkamp" site had been planned or communicated.

This is not correct! From the beginning, the council and the administration have discussed the accommodation of a maximum of 250 persons and for a period until the end of 2027 at the latest - and this has also been decided.

The city of Bocholt has already had experience with larger sites in the past. Of course, it would also be possible to build accommodation for less than 250 people. However, from the administration's point of view, a small size would bring with it some new problems:

If the accommodation is planned too small, more alternative locations will be needed for the accommodation of refugees in case of doubt. These locations must then also be staffed (e.g. by security, social services, educational support).

In addition, a smaller number of people will probably also reduce the number of children in the facility. Care through a so-called "bridge project" - i.e. central care at the location - can then possibly no longer be justified from an organisational point of view; in this case, the local care facilities would be additionally burdened.

Refugees have been accommodated in a decentralised manner for years.

This can be seen in the diagram: Blue are the locations of initial accommodation facilities in the Bocholt city area, the green dots indicate private housing that is rented to refugees in Bocholt.

However, the ongoing humanitarian crisis due to Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine also brings with it the need to prepare for larger migration movements. Because one thing is clear: if the number of refugees in Germany increases, the number of people who have to be accommodated in Bocholt will also increase.

The number of refugees in Bocholt is independent of the number of planned facilities. This number is determined by the district government based on federal and state law.

If the facility is not built, gymnasiums, sports halls, community halls or schools may have to be used again, which will then no longer be available to children, young people and clubs for months.

If the area "Auf dem Takenkamp" cannot be used for temporary refugee accommodation, another area for collective accommodation would have to be found in the city area.

The voting district and voting room in which you, as a citizen entitled to vote, can vote on Sunday, 22 October, is indicated on the official voting notification that was sent to you by post.

Have you lost the letter or forgotten your address?

Press the link to the Voting Room Finder. At "Where is my polling station?" and your polling station will be displayed.

All voting rooms are barrier-free.

The citizens' petition and the citizens' referendum are governed by the provisions of § 26 of the Municipal Code of North Rhine-Westphalia.

The citizens' petition would be successful if at least 15% of the citizens entitled to vote would vote in favour and this number of votes would also represent the majority.

In Bocholt, 58,036 people are entitled to vote. The 15% quorum thus corresponds to 8,705 people.