Stadskanaal will offer shelter to asylum seekers who cannot get a bed in the application center in Ter Apel because of the crowds there. The municipality offers the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) to use a transfer location for Ukrainians, which is empty and has a hundred beds.
In its own words, Stadskanaal sees “with sorrow” that people in Ter Apel regularly sleep outside or on chairs. “We find this degrading,” said Mayor Klaas Sloots. “And in the meantime we have a large tent with a hundred beds standing empty. That is why we entered into a dialogue with the COA on the basis that if the COA estimates that people will again sleep outside or on chairs, the COA can then use the transfer location for Ukrainians in Stadskanaal.”
Because it has become apparent that people in Ter Apel already need a place to sleep, the first refugees will immediately sleep in the tent on the Manegelaan in Stadskanaal next night. The intention is that people in Stadskanaal will be accommodated for one night and will move to a new location the next day. If the tent with the beds is needed for Ukrainians, the temporary agreement with the COA will stop.