A lot of water still needs to flow through the Vaart if there is to be an open-air swimming pool in Assen. Asser politicians are far from agreed on the approach to a follow-up investigation into the arrival of the swimming pool, which has been tinkered with indoors for months. Especially not about the way in which residents are allowed to participate in the discussion.
According to a proposal from a council working group, they would be allowed to make their voices heard three times in the follow-up process. What do Assen residents think is important about an open-air pool, which top 5 will emerge, and in the third referendum they can ultimately vote for their favorite scenario.
But parties such as ChristenUnie, VVD, PvdA, CDA and D66 have great difficulty with this. Because, according to them, citizens cannot estimate the financial consequences of an open-air bath for the municipal budget, and therefore for their own wallets. “For them it is in fact a dive into the deep end,” said the CDA.
Keeping such a swimming pool running will cost the municipality many hundreds of thousands of euros to a million euros every year. And all residents actually contribute to this through municipal taxes. “It doesn’t stop with an entrance ticket of 6 euros at the cash register,” says CU faction chairman Bouke Weening. “It is not free beer,” the PvdA warns.
So whether that should really be the case, that third round of voting on whether or not an open-air swimming pool, several parties are critical about that. Ultimately, they think it is a political choice, and not something for citizens to decide about. “That’s what we are there for as council members,” is their opinion.
So cancel the third round, that’s the motto. “Or you include the outcome of the first two voting rounds in the follow-up investigation, as planned, but then the municipal council first decides whether it is a yes or no. Only then do you let the people of Assen vote on which scenario it will ultimately be,” explains Weening.
College parties Assen Centraal (6 seats) and City Party PLOP (5 seats) make no difference. They do not think an in-depth follow-up study, including three rounds of referendums, is really necessary. In any case, they want an open-air swimming pool in the provincial capital. Only in which variant (basic, extended or luxury) and at which location, that still needs to be further investigated.
The three coalition partners ChristenUnie, VVD and SP are much more critical in the competition, despite the agreement in the administrative agreement that an open-air swimming pool will be further investigated. For these parties, it is very questionable whether Assen should want its own open-air swimming pool, especially because of the financial consequences, weighed against the necessity. For example, the VVD would much rather see the Baggelhuizerplas get a boost, so that it becomes the Asser swimming paradise in the summer in the future. The CU is mainly concerned about the multi-million investment, plus the annual operating costs.
Other issues in the upcoming follow-up investigation also divide the Asser parties considerably. Such as not taking into account possible consequences for the open-air baths in the region, such as those in Vries and Veenhuizen. Will they soon be empty when Assen gets its own swimming pool? And to what extent do you cannibalize it? According to the council working group, this does not need to be included in the follow-up investigation. But D66 believes that Assen should take the neighboring municipalities into account. “Vries already warned that an open-air swimming pool in Assen would be the death knell for them, because many Assen residents swim there. You cannot ignore those consequences,” said D66 councilor Wilfried de Jong.
Next Thursday, the Asser council will make a final decision on the approach to the follow-up investigation. In any case, it is clear that the ‘no open-air swimming pool’ scenario will also be added fourth, in addition to the options for a basic swimming pool, a more extensive swimming pool, and the upgrading of the Baggelhuizerplas. Because that should really temper the expectations of Assen residents somewhat, according to the ChristenUnie, D66, PvdA and SP. “Because the choice for ‘no swimming pool’ can certainly be made after the follow-up research.”