This translation is for information purposes only.
Only the original German version of the Garden Rules is legally valid.
§ 1 Name and seat of the association
The association bears the name „Kleingärtnerverein“ and has its seat in Cologne-Holweide. It is registered in the register of associations of the district court XXX under number XXXX.
The association is a member of the „Kreisverband Köln der Kleingärtnervereine e.V.“. (hereinafter referred to as the district federation).
§ 2 Purpose and aim of the association
1. a) The association aims to unite all citizens interested in allotment gardening.
b) It is committed to the promotion and maintenance of allotment garden sites and their development as part of the public green space accessible to the general public.
c) It is politically and religiously neutral.
d) It has to promote public health and the education of young people towards nature, taking into account the principle of public utility and the protection of the environment and the countryside.
2.
a) The association exclusively and directly pursues charitable purposes in the sense of the section „tax-privileged purposes“ of the tax code.
b) It shall act selflessly and shall not primarily pursue its own economic purposes.
c) The funds of the association may only be used for purposes in accordance with the statutes. Members shall not receive any benefits from the Association’s funds.
d) The activities of the Executive Committee are honorary. Furthermore, no person may be favoured by expenses that are alien to the purpose of the Association or by disproportionately high remuneration. Compensation for expenses of the Board members shall be regulated by the Extended Board.
The association has to apply for recognition as a non-profit allotment garden organisation at the responsible tax office. It must use its funds exclusively for the promotion of allotment gardening, in particular for the development and maintenance of its allotment garden site. 4.
(4) The association shall, in agreement with the district federation, promote the interests of allotment gardeners, in particular by ensuring that sufficient areas suitable for allotment garden sites are designated or specified in urban development plans.
(5) The association shall provide its members with individual allotment gardens for allotment use from the allotment garden site at its disposal in accordance with the provisions of this constitution, the lease agreement and the garden rules.
(6) The association shall provide its members with technical advice, support and training within the limits of its possibilities.
§ 3 Membership
(1) Any person of full age in possession of civil rights may become a member of the association if he or she is active in the sense of these statutes and leases an allotment garden. In addition, persons who promote and support the allotment garden movement may also become members.
(2) Persons who have rendered outstanding services to the allotment garden movement or who have promoted the aims of the association in an outstanding manner may be appointed honorary members by resolution of the general meeting.
3) Application for membership is made in writing to the executive committee. The Executive Committee shall decide on admission. This may also take the form of an application for inclusion in the Association’s waiting list. In the event of rejection, the person concerned shall be entitled to appeal to the Extended Executive Committee. The decision of the latter shall be final.
4) Membership is acquired by handing over the statutes and their signature of acceptance. The Association shall be entitled to charge an admission fee in the amount of one annual subscription.
§ 4 Rights arising from membership
a) to use the facilities of the Association in accordance with their intended purpose.
b) to participate in the events of the association.
c) to use the garden plot allocated by the lease contract in accordance with the contract.
d) to vote at the general meeting.
2. the professional advice provided by the Association shall be available to each member.
3. membership includes the subscription to the association’s magazine.
§ 5 Duties of the members
1 Every member is obliged
a) to work to the best of his ability for the interests of the allotment garden movement,
b) to work within the allotment garden community in accordance with these statutes, the tenancy agreement and the garden regulations,
c) to comply with the decisions of the association,
d) to pass on all applications and submissions exclusively through the association’s executive committee,
e) to pay membership fees and admission fees as well as apportionments and the rent due on the allotted garden plot by 31.01. of the financial year. In the event of late payment, the Executive Committee shall be entitled to charge reminder fees and interest on arrears at the legally permissible rate.
2. the tenant shall perform the stipulated community work. The substitute amount decided by the annual general meeting shall be paid for the community work not performed.
3. the financial year shall be the calendar year.
§ 6 Termination of membership
1 Membership shall expire
a) by the death of the member,
b) by voluntary resignation,
c) by expulsion.
2. In the event of the death of a member, the spouse, a child or a parent of the deceased member may become the member’s successor. The Executive Committee shall decide on the application.
3. resignation shall be declared in writing to the Executive Committee with a notice period of three months and simultaneous termination of the lease.
4. the termination of the lease and thus the exclusion of the member can take place if he/she
a) violates the lease agreement or garden regulations,
b) grossly damages the reputation or the interests of the association or the executive committee through his or her behaviour,
c) is more than three months in arrears with the payment of subscriptions, levies or other financial obligations to the association and, despite a written reminder, does not fulfil his obligations within two months,
d) has endangered or repeatedly disturbed the community of the association,
e) transfers his rights and obligations of membership to a third party,
f) allows the garden plot allotted to him or the buildings on it to be used in whole or in part by third parties,
g) when applying for membership, has concealed the fact that he already leases an allotment garden, that he has been excluded from another allotment garden association or that an allotment garden lease with another allotment garden association has been validly terminated through his fault.
5. the extended board decides on the exclusion with a 2/3 majority. The member concerned shall be heard before the decision is taken. The member concerned must be informed of the expulsion in writing with reasons and instructions on how to appeal by letter with certificate of delivery. An appeal against the decision of the Extended Executive Committee may be lodged with the District Association within three weeks of notification of the decision. The executive committee of the district association shall decide on the appeal. If the person concerned does not exercise this right or misses the deadline, the exclusion decision becomes effective. With the termination of membership, the lease agreement and any claims to the Association’s assets shall end at the same time. However, the withdrawing member is not released from the complete fulfilment of obligations arising from the statutes or other legally valid contracts.
§ 7 Organs of the Association
(1) The organs of the association are
a) the General Assembly
b) the legal executive committee
c) the Executive Committee
d) the Extended Executive Committee or the Executive Committee as a whole
(2) Minutes shall be taken of all deliberations or resolutions of the organs of the Association and shall be signed by the Chairperson or his/her deputy and the Secretary.
§ 8 The Executive Board
(1) The Executive Board shall consist of
a) the Chairman,
b) the Vice-Chairman,
c) the 1st Treasurer
d) the 2nd Treasurer
e) the 1st Secretary,
f) the 2nd Secretary
(2) in the case of associations with less than 100 members, the office of 2nd Treasurer and/or 2nd Secretary may remain vacant in the Executive Committee.
(3) The Executive Committee shall be responsible for
a) the day-to-day management of the Association, including the setting of membership fees, in conjunction with the Extended Board (General Board)
b) Preparation of the General Assembly and implementation of its resolutions,
c) Arrangement of community services,
d) employing suitable advisers in the field of fruit and vegetable growing and modern plant protection,
e) passing resolutions on the formation of earmarked reserves.
(4) the activities of the members of the Executive Board shall be honorary according to § 2 paragraph 2 d.
(5) The Executive Committee shall meet as required and shall constitute a quorum if, in addition to the inviting Chairperson, in the event of his or her being prevented from attending, the Deputy Chairperson, and other members of the Executive Committee, including the 1st Treasurer, are present. Resolutions of the Executive Committee shall be passed by majority vote. In the event of a tie, the Chairman shall have the casting vote, and in his absence, the 1st Treasurer shall have the casting vote.
§ 9 The Statutory Executive Committee
The legal executive committee consists of the chairman and the first treasurer. It is responsible for the joint representation of the association in the sense of § 26 BGB (legal representation).
§ 10 The Extended Executive Board
1. the extended executive committee consists of
a) the members of the Executive Committee,
b) the assessors (at least 1 representative for every 100 members or part thereof of the Association). 2.
2. it shall be responsible for
a) the support of the Executive Committee
b) the decision in cases of appeal according to § 3 section 3,
c) the participation in the expulsion procedure according to § 6 section 6,
d) the setting of fees, apportionments and other costs. 3.
(3) If the individual gardens to be looked after by the Association are distributed over separate sites or groups of gardens, each of them should be represented by at least one assessor on the Extended Executive Committee.
(4) additional persons may be appointed to the Extended Board for special tasks.
(5) The Extended Board shall constitute a quorum if more than half of its members are present, including the inviting Chairman or, if he is prevented from attending, his deputy and the first Treasurer. The Extended Board shall pass its resolutions by majority vote. In the event of a tie, the Chairperson shall have the casting vote, and in the event of his or her absence, the 1st Treasurer shall have the casting vote.
§ 11 The term of office of the Executive Board
The entire Executive Committee shall be elected for a term of three years. Its members shall remain in office beyond that time until successors are elected. Re-election is permitted. Eligible for election are members who
a) have full legal capacity,
b) are garden tenants in the Association (active members) or their spouses.
2. if one or both members of the statutory Board retire prematurely, the respective deputy shall take over the management of their official business on a provisional basis until the next possible General Meeting, which shall elect a new member. If necessary, an extraordinary General Assembly may be convened. 3.
If one or more members resign prematurely, the Executive Committee may elect a replacement; confirmation or a new election must be held at the next General Assembly.
If the entire Executive Committee resigns prematurely, it is obliged to declare its resignation to the General Assembly immediately and to call an extraordinary General Assembly for the purpose of an election. The district association must be informed of this.
§ 12 General Assembly of Members
The supreme organ of the Association shall be the General Assembly. It shall be convened when the interests of the Association require it, at least once a year as the Annual General Meeting in the first quarter of the calendar year. It shall also be convened without delay if 1/3 of the members of the Association request this in writing to the Executive Committee, stating the reasons. 2.
The general meeting shall be convened by the chairperson or, if he/she is prevented from doing so, by his/her deputy, in writing with at least 14 days‘ notice, stating the place, time and agenda of the meeting. A copy shall be sent to the Regional Association at the same time.
The chairperson or, if he/she is prevented from attending, his/her deputy, shall be responsible for chairing the general meeting.
- the general meeting, in which each member is entitled to one vote, has a quorum if it has been duly convened.
(5) The General Assembly shall be responsible for
a) the approval of the minutes according to § 12 section 9,
b) to receive the annual report, the cash report, the auditors‘ report and other reports on activities, to pass resolutions on them and to discharge the Executive Committee (simple majority),
c) the election of the entire Executive Committee,
d) the election of the auditors,
e) the passing of resolutions on amendments to the Statutes,
f) the passing of resolutions on the dissolution of the Association,
g) the appointment of honorary members and honorary chairpersons,
h) the passing of resolutions on motions.
(6) Resolutions of the General Assembly shall be passed by a simple majority of the valid votes cast. If this majority is not reached, the motion with the most votes in the case of different motions on the same subject shall be deemed to have been adopted, abstentions not being counted. In the event of a tie, motions shall be deemed rejected.
(7) Notwithstanding the provision in subsection 4 regarding the quorum of the general meeting, amendments to the bylaws shall require a majority of 2/3 of the votes cast, not counting invalid votes, and, in the case of dissolution of the association, a majority of 3/4 of all members of the association. If such a majority is not found for the dissolution of the Association, the majority required to amend the Statutes shall suffice at a new meeting to be convened. Amendments to the Statutes may not affect the provisions of the General Lease Agreement. 8.
(8) motions for the general meeting shall be submitted in writing to the executive committee by the deadline set, together with the reasons for the motion, so that the motion can be included in the agenda in writing.
(9) Minutes of the General Meeting shall be taken, signed by the Chairman and the Secretary, announced at the next General Meeting and approved by the General Meeting.
(10) The Executive Committee may invite experts to attend General Meetings to discuss important issues, but they shall not have the right to vote.
(11) The District Association shall be entitled to attend the General Assembly. Its representative shall be given the floor upon request.
§ 13 Arbitration
In the event of disputes between members or members and the executive committee arising from the statutes, garden rules or the lease agreement, the executive committee of the district association shall be consulted before recourse is had to the ordinary legal process.
§ 14 Cash management
1. the keeping of the cash books and the rendering of accounts shall be carried out by the 1st Treasurer or his/her deputy. A journal with cash accounts and budget titles shall be kept for the accounting. Other methods, e.g. computerised, which correspond to journal bookkeeping, are permissible in agreement with the district association. 2.
2, At least two auditors shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting for a period of three years to audit the Association’s cash and vouchers.
3, The auditors shall be obliged to audit the books, journal, cash and vouchers in full as and when required, but at least annually. The results of the audit shall be reported at the Annual General Meeting. 4.
4. the executive committee of the district association shall be entitled, within the scope of its supervisory duty, to audit or have audited the entire bookkeeping and cash management of the association at its expense. The documents shall be submitted to the district association
a) when requested to do so by the district association,
b) at the latest, however, when there is a change in the statutory executive committee of the association. (5) Otherwise, the association is subject to the auditing rights of the state supervisory authority (RP) in accordance with the provisions of allotment and association law.
§ 15 Dissolution of the association
In the event of the dissolution of the association or in the event of the cessation of its charitable purpose (cf. § 2 (2)), the assets shall be transferred to the locally responsible district federation of Cologne allotment garden associations e.V., which is recognised as a charitable organisation, and the latter shall use the assets exclusively and directly for charitable allotment garden purposes. If such a federation does not exist or if it does not have the fiscal non-profit status, the assets are to be transferred to the city for use for non-profit allotment garden purposes.
§ 16 Other provisions
The provisions of the General Lease Agreement concluded between the City of Cologne and the District Association and the Garden Regulations shall not be affected by these Statutes.
§ 17 Entry into force / Non-substantial amendments
(1) The provisions of the previous Statutes shall cease to have effect when these Statutes come into force.
(2) The Statutes were adopted at the General Meeting of the Association on 24 October 1991 and shall enter into force on the day of their entry into the Register of Associations.
The Executive Committee is entitled to make minor amendments to these Statutes or additions of an editorial nature, insofar as such amendments are required by the tax authorities with regard to the granting of non-profit status for tax purposes or by the registration court. It must obtain the approval of the Cologne district federation of allotment garden associations (Kreisverband Köln der Kleingärtnervereine e.V.).