Overview

• The 53rd edition lists roughly 100 cases nationwide, highlighting recurring cost escalations, delays and a special chapter on ongoing operating costs described as “teure Schatten.”
• A major warning targets the KfW-backed Northvolt project in Schleswig-Holstein with around €600 million at risk after the company’s insolvency, though a possible takeover by Lyten remains uncertain.
• Cited examples range from an unused daycare lease in Gießen and a short-lived sauna in Pfungstadt to a standalone bridge in Radeburg, bespoke seating in Eschwege and a hillside swing in Kassel.
• Authorities offered case-by-case rebuttals, including Gießen preparing city-run daycare operations, Kassel defending the swing’s minimal cost and symbolism, Koblenz stating its sludge facility is partly operating, and Monheim justifying high-profile cultural builds.
• The association calls for stricter scrutiny, fewer bureaucracy-driven missteps and attention to lifecycle costs, also criticizing Bundestag spending with a proposal to trim the chamber to about 500 members as public debate intensifies without immediate policy changes.