Buildable according to §34 - what does it really mean?

We also do not have a development plan. We built according to Paragraph 34 and still the orientation of the house depended on the development area, as different sides of the street belong to different development areas - in our case.

Very unusual regulation Rhein greetings

So for us, the municipality and building authority were very open in this regard. Although there have only been gable roofs on the street so far, two houses with shed roofs were built in gaps in the last two years. Statement "As long as you don’t build a four-story apartment building, everything should be fine." However, I believe that the interpretation of §34 strongly depends on the respective responsible authorities.

The interpretation of §34 is not the task of local building lords but ultimately the interpretation of the ordinary German judiciary. There is a clear and established jurisprudence on §34 – essentially, the building must "fit into the surroundings in terms of the type and extent of structural use." This means that the building must fit in terms of floor area ratio, number of floors, as well as the use: residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, mixed. The external design such as facade colors, front door colors, or the type of roof construction is not part of this.

Roof shapes and other design features are not covered by the fitting-in requirement because they neither affect the type or extent, nor the construction method or the buildable plot area. The roof shape as such is therefore not a consideration to be taken into account within the scope of fitting-in in the sense of § 34 para. 1 of the Building Code, since roof shapes cannot be fixed in a development plan according to § 9 para. 1 of the Building Code.

Some offices see this differently, so you just have to have the guts to sue or give in.

I think they won't be that strict with us there either, but I can imagine them saying "No, no townhouse because the 3-4 surrounding neighbors don't have a townhouse and it doesn't fit in with the picture." Well, I'll call there on Monday and let you know. Can I somehow get it in writing beforehand that I'm allowed to build a villa there or is that not possible? I don't want them to say "Yes, that's fine" and later during the building permit or something, then comes the "No." Then we'd be stuck.

Why does it have to be a city villa?

I think they won't be that strict with us either, but I can imagine them saying "No, no city villa, because the 3-4 surrounding neighbors don't have a city villa and it therefore doesn't fit the picture."

They can say that, but in all likelihood it would be illegal.

I always find it fascinating how obedient the German Michl is..