In the municipality of Maashorst, three reception locations are planned for asylum seekers and that causes a lot of anger and worries. Not only with residents, but also in the city council. He fired one question after the other on Thursday evening at the college about the safety of the AZCs in particular. Last Wednesday, a demonstration in Uden ran into riots against the plans.
The three reception locations in Maashorst must remain for at least five years. In Uden there will be an AZC for 341 asylum seekers with room for fled Ukrainians, status holders and their own residents who are urgently looking for a home. That brings the total to around a thousand people. There will also be reception places in Schaijk and Zeeland, but the numbers are much lower there.
Safety
Especially the location on the Boekelsedijk in Uden encounters a lot of resistance because of its size and because it is next to a sports park and important bicycle connection. During the committee meeting last Thursday evening, residents, just like during the information evenings, made it clear that they have great worries about safety.
One of the speakers wondered whether children could still safely exercise with the arrival of the AZC in Uden. “Cyclists have to maneuver themselves between traffic. It is already unsafe,” said another during the meeting. Another speaker has the fear that children in the nearby residential area will no longer play outside.
Spreading Act
Although the safety at the top of the question and care list of both the city councilors and residents were on Thursday evening, the consequences were also withdrawn by The Hague. After all, it is that law that the municipality forces to arrange the reception locations in such a relatively short term.
Mayor Hans van der Pas replied to the question of Emiel Jozephs (Jong Maashorst) that the municipality also has a task without the Spreading Act. “We will have to do this anyway.”
No plan B
Alderman Franko van Lankvelt (spatial development) indicated that it concerns temporary permits that are necessary for the realization of the locations. “That makes everything can be faster,” he said. The plan for three reception locations is ambitious, but feasible according to him.
“We have no plan B,” said Mayor Hans van der Pas. According to him, it is not that more people come to one location if problems arise in another place.
Fulfill an appointment
The VVD in Maashorst still wondered whether the current reception location in the Van der Valk Hotel in Uden can no longer remain open, but the mayor says he wants to keep to the agreements and that this location closes on October 1, 2026.
The question fire of the city council to the college was so great that a lot of questions could not even be asked, let alone be answered. That is why the Maashorst city council will continue to talk on Monday 12 May during a committee meeting, to meet again three days later.