A new, perhaps three times more expensive energy contract could be a blow to the football and handball clubs at Sportpark Rooswijk in Velsen-Noord. That is, if nothing happens before the contract takes effect at the end of this calendar year. Chairman Ed van Beilen of FC Velsenoord: “You can sit down, but you can also do something about it.”
Sportpark Rooswijk is located a few hundred meters before the entrance to the Tata Steel site. It is one of the greenest parts of Velsen-Noord. More than 360 children and adults from the village play sports every two weeks at football club FC Velsenoord and handball club HCV’90.
They are not the largest clubs in the region, but according to Van Beilen that is not a problem: “We are a small club in a small village, but we are stable. In recent years, the number of members has even increased a bit. Before that, when the Binnenduinrandweg has been built, we have lost some Beverwijk members; they did not want to cross the road.”
According to club member Eric Goedhart, the clubs are of great importance to the community in the village. The canteen is an important meeting place in the villageL “We are a huge social point, a real benchmark in the village.” In recent weeks he shared in the cafeteria anniversary books because the football club has existed for a hundred years. They are eagerly sought after by (former) members.
Text continues below the video.
But while the Velsen-Noorders leafed through their nostalgic jubilee book in the cafeteria, they also discussed a few rumors and concerns with each other: will a new, expensive energy contract turn the future of the clubs upside down? Can the relatively small clubs bear that together? Especially because some members had heard that the handball association would have to leave the site in the foreseeable future.
HCV’90 chairman René Schelvis can suppress some of those rumors: “We are now just healthy clubs. And our club will also stay at Rooswijk.” But where does that rumor about the handball club come from?
Schelvis: “The handball association may eventually want the outdoor handball matches from the classic fields as we have them at Sportpark Rooswijk to sand fields. Beach handball is becoming increasingly popular. I don’t think such sand fields can come here. But I’m totally concerned about that Don’t worry about it, maybe that will happen in ten years.”
‘No point in complaining’
The energy contract is a concern. If prices remain about the same, the costs will go from about a thousand euros a month at the end of this year to about three thousand.
Van Beilen: “This cannot be compensated by increasing the contribution. Moreover, we would like to keep it low.” But ‘there’s no point in complaining or being negative’, says Van Beilen. “A lot of clubs are having these problems, we are really not the only ones.”
And so the clubs are working hard to reduce energy costs, and that is going in the right direction, say the chairmen. Van Beilen and Schelvis sum up the measures: “For example, the lighting of the fields will be LED. Shower times will be taken into account and the canteen will have double glazing.”
But that comes with a hefty price tag: the entire package of measures must cost around 100,000 euros. “We are trying to write grants, like the TEK, the Energy Cost Allowance. But getting such an amount together is a challenge, yes,” admits the football chairman.
Help from the municipality
The municipality also says it would like to lend a helping hand to make Sportpark Rooswijk and other sports facilities more sustainable. “FC Velsenoord has already installed LED lighting on one sports field. The municipality is installing LED lighting on the other fields. It is expected that this can be done before or after the summer holidays.”
And there will be extra support later this year when 300 million euros are distributed to all municipalities in the Netherlands via the Municipal Fund.
A spokesperson: “Societal facilities can be supported with this. In this way, sports clubs, among other things, can be supported to absorb the consequences of rising energy prices. We are working on a subsidy scheme with which we can support sports clubs and cultural institutions that are greatly disadvantaged by the increased energy prices. want to support financially. The aim is to be able to make a decision about this in June, after which we can start the subsidy scheme.”