Eight shop owners had requested that shops be allowed to open on Sunday, April14 and the item was put forward on the council agenda. Spokesperson for the initiative, Victoria Harlos said up to 20,000 tourists visited the Old Town every day during the blossoming season over the past few years, and the trend is growing.

Harlos explained that the idea to open stores on a Sunday was not about sales promotion, but rather to add value for visitors. Further, open shops would add to the charm of the Old Town during the cherry blossom fest. She also noted that this part of the city didn’t have any Sunday shopping days, in contrast with the inner city. "Five hours - that would only be fair," she explained. But the administration saw it differently, and referred to store opening laws in NRW. "The approval requires a public interest, for example in connection with festivals, markets or trade fairs," said Axel Reiß, director at Bonn Citizen Services, and cherry blossoms didn’t fall in one of these categories.

Another "event" would "greatly overburden" the infrastructure of the Old Town. Local residents have to contend with high traffic volumes, noise and rubbish because of the rush of visitors, and this would be exacerbated by Sunday shopping. Especially since the weather-dependent event cannot really be scheduled.

The administration said it wanted to accommodate those who came forward with the request by allowing them to put information stands in front of the shops - for those who apply for a special permit. One politicians asked if the idea of Sunday shopping was supported by all the businesses, another mentioned the danger of increasing commercialization, and another sympathized with residents.

Varying positions have led in the past to quarrels and complaints at the cherry blossom festival. "A lack of toilets, overflowing garbage bins... tourist buses in the narrow streets, traffic jams and not enough seating", spelled out district mayor Brigitta Poppe-Reiners. She invited stakeholders for a discussion about the situation.

And the question of who will finance the mobile toilets remains. "Business people cannot get stuck with the costs. The district has no budget for this. I want to discuss the matter with Tourismus und Congress GmbH, which will ultimately benefit from the event," says Poppe-Reiners. "Under no circumstances should the residents have to do the clean-up work after all the commotion."

Orig. text: Jutta Specht Translation: Carol Kloeppel