A report by the State Audit Office (LRH) of North Rhine-Westphalia harshly criticizes the budgeting and cost planning of public broadcasters. As Bild reports, attention is focused on the renovation of the WDR Filmhaus in Cologne, which will turn out to be considerably more expensive than initially planned.
The Court of Auditors criticizes the WDR
The initially estimated amount for the renovation of the building was around 130 million euros. However, there is now talk of costs amounting to 240 million euros, a huge increase in costs that, according to the Court of Auditors' report, contradicts “the principles of correct cost planning.”
The newspaper Bild cites the 32-page final report of the State Audit Court, in which the WDR is criticized, among other things, for not having carried out a sufficient economic feasibility study before the decision and for the justification of the award of the shell. The construction work was inadequate. According to the auditors, there was also a lack of “comprehensible control of the appropriateness of prices.”
The WDR rejects the criticism and states that these are “evaluations different from those of the LRH” in “essential points.” According to the broadcaster, renovating its movie theater remains the most economical solution and other options, such as demolition and new construction, would be less economical and less sustainable.
WDR defends the project in a statement
The WDR explains the explosion of costs mainly with the “evolution of costs in the construction sector”. In a statement he says: “It is well known that there have been drastic price increases here in recent years.” Only a small part of the costs is due to the station's change requests.
The construction will also reduce additional space in Cologne's city center. The focus is on the core of the building complex between Wallrafplatz and Breite Straße.
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