News item | 10-12-2024 | 2:25 PM
13 municipalities will receive a total of €22 million from the government to tackle their shopping areas. Minister Dirk Beljaarts of Economic Affairs (EZ) announced this today. In many municipalities, the number of vacant shops is increasing, making shopping areas less attractive for residents and visitors.
Minister Beljaarts: Shopping streets are of great economic and social importance for many cities and villages. But these shopping streets are under pressure, partly due to online shopping. Shopping streets are increasingly confronted with vacancy and deterioration. It is very important that municipalities have the resources to combat this problem. So that shopping areas remain attractive and liveable for retailers, residents and visitors.
Approved project requests
The 13 municipalities that receive a contribution are: Almelo (Overijssel), Bergen op Zoom (North Brabant), Halderberge (North Brabant), Heerlen (Limburg, Hoogeveen (Drenthe), Houten (Utrecht), Kerkrade (Limburg), Leiden (South Holland), Maastricht (Limburg), Moerdijk-Fijnaart (North Brabant), Nijmegen (Gelderland), Waadhoeke-Franeker (Friesland) and Veendam (Groningen).
A total of 41 municipalities applied for financial support for this 4th and final round, for a combined amount of just over €87 million. €22 million was available in this last tranche.
Make areas attractive
Dutch municipalities could apply for financial support to make shopping areas attractive again for both residents and visitors. By redesigning the area and improving the quality of buildings and public space, the shopping experience is improved. In the projects that receive a contribution, attention is paid to, for example, walking routes, variety of shopping options, accessibility and the appearance of the shopping area. In addition, a lot of attention is paid to making the shopping area more compact and therefore more attractive by replacing square meters of retail space with other functions, such as (care) homes and public greenery and tackling the upper residential floors. In addition to the efforts of municipalities, private investors play an important role in the realization of the projects.
Successful approach
The Impulse Approach to Shopping Areas has now awarded subsidies to 42 municipalities in the Netherlands to make their inner-city shopping areas future-proof. A total of €88 million was made available in four rounds.
After four allocation rounds, all plans involve renovating 13,000 m2 of retail space and investing €78 million in public space. The housing assignment plays an important role in the projects. More than 5,000 homes will be built using the scheme, including approximately 1,700 social rental homes and 1,800 affordable homes.
Thanks to co-financing contributions from market parties, the scheme’s subsidy has led to a total investment of half a billion euros in projects that make central areas attractive again. In addition to financial support, the Impulse Approach to Shopping Areas consists of a knowledge program. This will run until 2031, when the last projects have been completed.
For more information about the approved plans: Results Impulsive approach to shopping areas (rvo.nl)