Catering, a family farm, a farewell cottage and a bed-and-breakfast. And all this in a scenic environment that exudes the atmosphere of historic Schoonebeek. In short, this is the plan for De Boo recreation building.
It is a plan that Toby and Hellen Klingenberg of the Isabelle Foundation and the antiquarian foundation De Spiker are going for together. Both parties have made a plan to turn the area around De Boo recreation building into a real attraction for villagers and tourists.
Coincidence brought both parties together. “It used to be that both we and the Klingenberg family were looking around the same location for both of our projects,” explains De Spiker chairman Henry Eisen. The foundation got hold of the Hekmans boo almost two years ago. It concerns a cattle barn dating from 1646, which in earlier times could be found along the Schoonebekerdiep.
The boo has stood unused for years at a dairy company, which donated the building to De Spiker two years ago. “For the relocation of the boo, the municipality of Emmen bought a piece of land southwest of the recreation building for relocation, Eisen explains.
In the meantime, De Spiker thought about a good interpretation for the boo. “We thought of a form of exploitation that complements the village, has social impact and is accessible to everyone. And then we also realized that the Klingenberg family was working on their initiative for their family farm north of our location.”
Toby and Hellen Klingenberg lost their daughter Isabelle in a traffic accident in 2021. It was their wish to build a petting zoo on the site behind De Boo. Not only in memory, but also as a thank you for the support they received from the village. The building board was unveiled in February.
The two got into a conversation and decided to hire entrepreneur Bert Finke as a quartermaster, after which the plans immediately became a lot more ambitious. Eisen: “The idea is to fill the Hekmans boo partly with daytime activities and small-scale catering with a terrace. We also miss a regional products shop in the village. We would also like to accommodate that.” The daytime activities can be rented out in the evenings to associations for gatherings and meetings.