The financial problems accumulate for the Veenpark in Barger-Compascuum. The park must repay more than 120,000 euros in a subsidy obtained to the province. The Veenpark will also not receive a new subsidy for the time being.
The province and municipality of Emmen have announced that the Open Air Museum has not met the subsidy conditions. The Veenpark received a postponement, but still has not achieved the set goals. As a result, the subsidy for the second half of this year, almost 80,000 euros from the province, will be canceled.
Moreover, too much subsidy has been paid on the basis of the costs that the Veenpark ultimately incurred about in recent years. The province calculates that it will receive around 120,000 euros from the Veenpark.
The province speaks about a ‘worrying’ financial situation at the Veenpark. In separate from the recovery, a new subsidy amount is seen as ‘not responsible’.
The Veenpark launched a so -called master plan in 2021 to become relevant again. Among other things, the park must grow into a fully -fledged museum, a status that it does not have now. The municipality and the province stuck one -off one million euros in the park as extra support.
That was new, because the park has managed to support itself for years. However, the problems came to light at the end of 2019. The number of visitors had plummeted to a level at which the park could no longer keep their heads up.
The municipality does not want to anticipate the future of the Veenpark. “It is now up to the park to consider what the province’s decision means for them,” writes the municipal administration in a letter. “We keep talking to the Veenpark about the sequel. The Veenpark is an important day attraction, cultural facility and carrier of the story of the Veen, which we would like to keep in our municipality.”