Are villages and neighborhoods in Emmen sufficiently involved in drawing up the municipality’s housing vision? This question was raised by several political groups during the committee meeting that was on the agenda this evening. The reason is the letter that the village council of Barger-Compascuum sent to the city council. It calls for people not to agree with the housing vision.
The village council criticizes the comment in the document that the housing stock matches the demand, but according to the village council there is a shortage of lots and houses in Barger-Compascuum. And not only they made themselves heard. A representative of EOP ‘t Centrum (the interest association of the center residents of Emmen) also noted that their board wants to remain involved in the vision.
Especially with the announced construction of eleven homes on the site of a demolished school on the Veenkampen, EOP ‘t Centrum is happy to participate. The neighborhood has difficulty with the new construction in this location, because it is seen as an ideal playground for neighborhood children, among other things. According to Trijntje Hummel (PvdA), it makes sense when two local authorities call for (more) involvement.
“Have they been taken enough?” she wondered. Bernadette van der Woude (GroenLinks) then suggested whether there is no question of just an official vision instead of one that has been established with residents.
Alderman Jisse Otter said that the vision was presented ‘not very broadly’ to the villages and districts, partly because there is a risk that it will be looked at too much from a local perspective. “If we had asked everyone how many homes they would have liked, we would have arrived at ten thousand (the municipality is aiming for four thousand homes by 2030, ed.). Everyone wants them to be built, because then people will also come. I totally agree with that, but is something like that realistic?” said Otter.
Moreover, the vision is about a spatial analysis, not about concrete plans, says Otter. “When it comes to that, the local authorities will of course be informed and involved in the process.” Finally, he reported that the municipality in Barger-Compascuum is working on an initiative. “In time we will also look at plots in Barger-Compascuum.”