Brixental tourism association ousts chairman over Kirchberg switch plan

The Brixental tourism association has removed its chairman, Wilhelm Steindl, after disagreements over his plan to put Kirchberg’s possible move to the Kitzbühel tourism association to a vote, ORF Tirol reports.

The issue has occupied tourism businesses, operators and members of the association for weeks. Steindl had invited members to a general meeting on October 12, where they were due to vote on whether Kirchberg should remain in the Brixental association or leave it.

The proposal first emerged during cooperation talks with the Kitzbühel tourism association, Steindl said in an internal letter to Brixental members. He wrote that Kitzbühel would only discuss the matter with its supervisory board once there was agreement within the Brixental association on a possible change.

Kirchberg’s local committee, which Steindl also chaired until Tuesday, had already unanimously approved the move in principle. The two other member municipalities, Brixen and Westendorf, were less supportive.

Steindl’s two deputies and members of the supervisory board criticised his decision to schedule the vote. They described it as a unilateral move involving one of the most far-reaching structural decisions in the association’s history.

According to their internal letter, Kitzbühel Tourism had said there were no concrete merger negotiations and therefore no specific models or draft contracts. They said Steindl had nevertheless presented 11 key points, covering Kirchberg’s separation, property, staff, existing contracts and changes to visitor taxes and the percentage levy. The proposed date for the change was January 1, 2027.

The other officials said important questions remained unresolved for Brixen and Westendorf. “The future of Kirchberg, Brixen and Westendorf is not the personal project of individual officials,” they wrote.

Steindl told ORF Tirol that he had deliberately sought to begin a democratic process and let the general meeting decide. He said a vote was not legally required but reflected his democratic principles.

He said the possibility of a move had been discussed for decades. Kirchberg had always wanted to join Kitzbühel because of shared tourism interests, including a shared cable-car company, he said. The proposal therefore received broad support from Kirchberg’s local committee.

The October 12 meeting is due to go ahead without Steindl. He said it had been properly convened.

At a supervisory board meeting on Tuesday, Steindl, who had taken over as chairman only in November 2025, was voted out. He was replaced by Julia Mingler-Haueis, the former chairwoman of the supervisory board, who will also temporarily lead Kirchberg’s local committee.

Mingler-Haueis said in a written statement that she would work to restore orderly structures and secure long-term prospects for the entire Brixental. Steindl described his removal as “radical” but said he accepted the decision. In his view, however, it did not resolve the question of a possible change to the association’s territory.